Minnesota Farm Living

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MN Agriculture: Travis and Jeanine Fowler, Sheep, Goats, Pigs and Crops

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30 days of MN ag picDay 25 of my “30 Days of MN Agriculture” is Travis and Jeanine Fowler of Truman in south central Minnesota. They raise multiple livestock. Be sure to find out how many baby lambs their ewe gave birth to! It’s amazing! 

Tell me a little about your farm and/or business?

We are a family farm. I farm with my parents, wife and children. I am the 6th generation to farm.

How long have you farmed or been in business?

I guess you could say I was born into it. I got my first sheep at about age 5 but got my real start at 15 years of age.

Tell me a little about what you grown/raise/produce or service provided.

We raise sheep, dairy goats (for show), poultry, hogs, corn, soybeans and some hay.

Where do you sell or provide services to? Who is your end consumer?Continue Reading

MFL Giveaway – Pigs, The Inventor of Bacon T-Shirt and Seasoning

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Pig tshirt
Pigs, the Inventor of Bacon T-shirt

Pigs, the Inventors of Bacon

Minnesota Farm Living is celebrating the new blog layout/design! And not only that, it’s midsummer and it’s just a good time to have a giveaway. From now until the end of Monday, July 27, 2015 you have a chance to win either a “Pigs, the Inventor of Bacon” t-shirt (size large only) or “Martin County Magic Seasoning” a great rub for grilling pork.

So how do you win?

It’s rather simple. Go to my blog home page –  www.mnfarmliving.com and sign up for email notifications of my blog. You will see on the right hand of the home page a place to enter your email address for a subscription. Just remember to verify/activate your email address! The second way for a chance to win is follow me on instagram at instagram.com/mnfarmliving. That’s it! There will be a random drawing from those who participate. Good Luck!

Martin County Magic Seasoning 

Martin County Magic Seasoning
Martin County Magic Seasoning

 

MN Agriculture: Hugoson Pork, Five Generations Later

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All Things Minnesota Agriculture
All Things Minnesota Agriculture

Day 26 of my 30 Days of Ag “All Things Minnesota Agriculture” is Hugoson Pork. Hugoson Pork is owned by Kevin & Mary Hugoson, Eric Hugoson,  and Cody, Angie, Addison & Kylie Toothaker. They are located in East Chain, MN. I have known the Hugosons for many years. They are upstanding members and leaders of the community.

I would like to share a story from many years ago:

When our county started to expand in pigs, a number of younger pig farmers decided to meet informally on a regular schedule. It was a group of about eight farmers. Kevin Hugoson, along with my husband, were members of this group. Why did they meet? Each of them brought their production records to share with the sole purpose of learning from each other. They wanted to know what worked and what didn’t work on each of their individual farms. 

Their ultimate goal? To be better farmers.

No organization or business were behind these meetings. They met because they wanted to and knew it would be key to their success. And it was. . .  

The Hugoson family farm has been in the family since 1881.  It began when Kevin’s great-grandparents immigrated to the United States from Sweden.  The farm, which was homesteaded in 1888, has been passed down through many generations. 

Most recently, Kevin and Mary Hugoson purchased the farm in 1985 from Kevin’s parents, Leighton and Ardis Hugoson. At the time of purchase, the Hugoson farm was a 200 sow farrow-to-finish operation.  Today the Hugoson Family farm is a fifth generation farm.  It is a farrow-to-finish operation which consists of 5 sow farms.  The Hugosons are the owners of 15,000 wean-to-finish spaces.  They have 25 contract growers and 50 full-time and part-time employees.  They also grow corn and soybeans.  Kevin and Mary live in the farmhouse Kevin’s great-grandparents built after arriving from Sweden.  They farm with their son Eric and daughter Angie and son-in-law Cody. Angie and Cody have two daughters, Addison & Kylie.

Social Media Sites:

Facebook: www.facebook.com/HugosonPork

Volunteering in Community

The Hugosons are involved with the East Chain Evangelical Free Church, Martin County Pork Producers, Fairmont Teen Community Bible Study, Fairmont Fellowship of Christian Athletes and MN Pork Producers Association.  Kevin is the former Minnesota Pork Producers Association President. When Eric and Angie were younger, they were also very involved with the East Chain 4-H Club.

All Things Minnesota Agriculture
The Hugoson Family

Tell me a little about what you grow/raise/produce/or service provided.

“Pigs (farrow-to-finish) and corn and soybeans.”

Where do you sell or provide services to? Who is your end consumer?

“Hormel, Tyson, John Morrell – end consumer is the general public!”

All Things Minnesota Agriculture
In The Barn

Our business is about family. Raising pigs is our livelihood. It’s our passion. We love what we do. We wake up every day and ask ourselves what can we do better. I think the farther our society gets from the farm, the harder our job becomes. On top of trying to do the best we can to raise our animals, it seems like we spend more and more time to properly educate our consumers. If we do not get out and tell our story, someone else is going to do it for us, and it isn’t always the truth. It seems like our society has become comfortable creating all of their opinions based on what they read on social media or heard Dr. Oz say, rather than asking a farmer for themselves. Do we all have to agree on everything? No. But at the end of the day, all we ask is before people create a strong opinion one way or the other, that they get the facts straight from the source.

All Things Minnesota Agriculture
Hugoson Pork – The Next Generation

We live in the most pig dense county in the state and at times that can be daunting when it comes to herd health, but it also can be exciting and challenging. We take biosecurity seriously to make sure that we keep our animals healthy. With harsh winters and hot summers it is important that every single one of our animals is in a climate controlled environment. Our pigs have access to feed and water at all times. We care about every single animal that we have!

Despite being a fifth generation family farm, we wouldn’t be where we are without the help of our outstanding team of employees. They are an integral part of what we do and who we are. We are so thankful that we have been blessed and hope to continue our family business for many generations to come. We are proud to be a small part in feeding our world!

Did you know?

If you have been to the Minnesota State Fair’s Oink Booth or other events where the Minnesota Pork Producers are represented, you may have seen the “virtual farmer.” Well, the face behind the “virtual farmer” is Eric Hugoson. And now you know!

2014 Minnesota Pork Congress
“Virtual farmer”  

 

 

MN Agriculture: The Meyers, A Family Farm In The Truest Sense

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All Things Minnesota Agriculture
All Things Minnesota Agriculture

Day 24 of my 30 Days of Ag “All Things Minnesota Agriculture” is Jordan Meyer and her family farm, Meyer Farms. Jordan is pig farmer from Welcome, MN. Her family farm runs a diversified corn, soybeans and pig farm. Jordan’s parents are Steve and Lori and Brody is her brother. The Meyers raise pigs–Steve has 5000 head, Jordan has 925 head and Brady has 240 head. They also custom finish about 2000 head and crop farm around 1000 acres.

The Meyers have farmed for about 30 years. They have a rotation of 2/3 corn and 1/3 soybeans, which is not unusual for this part of the state. Much of that is due to the livestock feed requirements. Most of their corn is fed to the pigs. They use the pig manure as fertilizer for grain production. They mill about 60% of their own feed requirements. All of the pigs the Meyers raise are sold to Hormel in Austin, MN. Most of the soybeans are used for soybean meal and soy oil.

I personally have known the Meyers for many years. They are a true “family farm.” I am particularly impressed with Jordan. She breaks many of the stereotypes of a farmer. She is young, smart, independent and female. And I might add, she does an outstanding job. She is not afraid to take on a task. Whether it be on her farm or with the local Martin County Pork Producer group where she is vice-president. She has a “take charge” attitude and is not afraid to get her hands dirty, both literally and non-literally. She will continue to be a leader in the pig industry, both on the farm and off. 

Tell me a little bit about your farm.

“The farm we are on is the farm that Steve was born on. We have increased our business to include our children. We are proud that our farm was built from hard work and management. Even though the shovels don’t wear out as fast, the daily commitment is the same or more.”

All Things Minnesota Agriculture
The Meyer Family

What do you like about farming?

“To be a grower or producer, you have to appreciate watching the corn emerge, or stand in the alley of a new barn of pigs and watch, look, and listen to them like they are one of your own. Ag is a lifestyle – sometimes busier than other but it is all that we know and we intend on doing it well.”  

What would you like people to know about farming?

“Fix the misconception about ag. Especially in the pork industry, there is this widespread assumption that we don’t take care of or abuse our animals. We wish that people would understand the damage they do when they speak without knowing the facts. We not only have a financial interest in our animals, but we care deeply about them. They are our livelihood.”

All Things Minnesota Agriculture
The Meyer Family

What else would you like to add?

We wish people knew about the stress of raising livestock. If you think you worry when your children get sick, try having a barn full of animals. You worry they might get sick, you worry more when they do get sick, you do everything in your power to help them feel better, and if it doesn’t work you feel so helpless. Then there’s the financial stress, of agriculture in general. You borrow the money, and if the market crashes or something happens to your herd or the weather isn’t in your favor and you don’t make any money you still have to repay the loan. It’s not a 9-5 where you’re always guaranteed a check. There’s a lot of risk in farming.

 

 

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