Day 16 of my “30 Days of MN Agriculture” is Thomas and Janae Olson of Danvers. Danvers has a population of 97 and is located in western Minnesota (to be honest, I had never heard of Danvers!) Thomas and Janae are young family farmers and are continuing the family farming tradition.
Tell me a little about your farm and/or business?
We are a fourth generation family farm from western Minnesota.
How long have you farmed or been in business?
I have farmed for 15 years.
Tell me a little about what you grown/raise/produce or service provided.
We raise corn and soybeans. We sell our crops to WestCon Cooperative.
What makes your farm/business unique or special? What are you proud of?
We are very proud of what we do. We take great pride in running a clean and organized operation. We are proud in growing and providing a good quality product.
What I love most about farming is watching how each year so many different challenges to overcome and learning new ways to overcome the challenges. I am also proud of being able to raise our family on the same farm I grew up on so our two little boys can enjoy all what the farm life has to offer.
What would you like to tell your customers?
I wish consumers would take the time to educate themselves about the GMO issue–to understand what it means and not believe the anti-GMO activists.
A little about Janae
I do marketing work in the healthcare industry. I grew up in the town of Benson (Minnesota) and didn’t really have much knowledge of farming before dating Tom. We’ve been together for over ten years (married for 5). I was a stay-at-home mom for two and a half years and loved it…the boys (Lucas – 3 and Derek – 18 months now) got to experience so much on the farm during those couple of years.
What is one ag-related place in Minnesota that others need to know about. What is one non-ag related place in Minnesota that others need to know about and why?
Driving through western Minnesota in late June when the crops are looking good with so much promise is something everyone would enjoy.
The north shore of Lake Superior is a must for everyone who has not yet been there.
That picture of the Olson boys is a calendar quality photo!
Thanks, Elaine!
Following in your families footsteps!! You have a beautiful family and I bet those boys will love the soil as much as you!! Proud of you♡