LOOK INSIDE FOR OUR WORLD DAIRY EXPO PREVIEW EDITION!
DAIRY ST R
September 11, 2021
“All dairy, all the time”™
Volume 23, No. 14
Reaching for the stars
STACEY SMART/DAIRY STAR
The Ebert family – (from leŌ) Randy, Renee, Whitney and Jordan – operate Ebert Enterprises where they milk 4,200 cows and farm almost 9,000 acres near Algoma, Wisconsin.
Completing the circle of life
Ebert Enterprises opens farm-to-fork restaurant By Stacey Smart
stacey.s@dairystar.com DANIELLE NAUMAN/DAIRY STAR
Randy Winch (center) is named the 2021 Wisconsin Star Farmer at the Wisconsin FFA ConvenƟon July 5-8 in Madison, Wisconsin. Winch and his family dairy farm near Fennimore, Wisconsin.
Winch named Wisconsin Star Farmer By Danielle Nauman danielle.n@dairystar.com
FENNIMORE, Wis. – Agriculture and the dairy industry have made up the fabric of Randy Winch’s life. Winch grew up on his family’s dairy farm and has set his sights on creating is his own future in the industry. The 18-yearold son of Peter and Christina Winch was named the Wisconsin Star Farmer at the Wisconsin FFA Convention held earlier this summer in Madison. “It was just indescribable when they announced my name,” Winch said. “It was so surprising and something I had worked so hard toward. All of the 10 nalists were on stage, and they started with 10th place. And, as each name that was read off and I was still standing, it was such an emotional high.” Winch was raised on his family’s Pine Grove Dairy near Fennimore with his brothers Wesley, 16, and Matthew, 14. They milk 240 cows with four robots. Winch is beginning his freshman year at South Dakota State University in Brookings, South Dakota, where he is majoring in agricultural engineering. The application process for Wisconsin FFA’s top award is a long one, starting with an in-depth written application. Turn to WINCH | Page 7
ALGOMA, Wis. – Serving farm-fresh meals to the Algoma community and beyond, Homestead Kitchen and Tap opened June 17 and is the newest endeavor of the Ebert family. Burgers made with the farm’s beef are a top seller at the Eberts’ farm-tofork restaurant located a couple miles down the road from their dairy. “For years, we’ve been talking about taking product to the consumer,” Randy Ebert said. “But we never had a goal of owning a restaurant. It’s more about completing the circle of life.” Ebert Enterprises is run by Randy and Renee Ebert and their children, Jordan and Whitney. The Eberts milk 4,200 cows three times a day in an 80-stall rotary parlor and farm close to 9,000 acres – one-third of which are double cropped. Homesteaded in 1868, Randy and Renee are the sixth generation to run the Ebert farm, and Jordan and Whitney are the seventh. Watching over the family from above is the Ebert’s daughter, Britney, who passed away in 2016 at the age of 19. Britney was the twin of Whitney and was born with hydrocephalus – an illness that delayed her learning.
Britney’s memory lives on as she remains a special part of the Ebert family. Angel wings can be found within the logos of the restaurant and Ebert Enterprises, serving as a tribute to the Eberts’ beloved daughter and sister. “Even though Britney is gone now, she shaped our family, and we miss her every day,” Randy said. “We feel super blessed to have raised our children on the farm.” Diversication is in the Eberts’ blood, and the last year and a half was lled with a trifecta of business decisions that put the family on a rapid course of living the circle of life mentality they proudly stand behind. First, the Eberts bought Salmon’s Meat Products in Luxemburg – a meat, sausage and venison shop known for its natural casing and smoked meats. Next, they built a facility for harvesting animals on the farm. And third, they opened a restaurant. “We’re blessed with a heck of a group of employees that allow us to do all of this,” Randy said. Proud to serve a local, fresh product to their neighbors, the Eberts enjoy sharing their farm for customers to serve at their table. “The restaurant allows us to have a close, personal relationship with the customer,” Jordan said. “That’s something you don’t get at the wholesale level.” The round, red and white building housing Homestead
Kitchen and Tap mimics a barn and matches the design of the Eberts’ parlor. The eye-catching establishment exudes rustic ambiance at every turn and carries the farm theme throughout as a windmill fan spins above the bar, and country décor lls the space. Pictures of cows and crops taken on the Eberts’ farm adorn the walls. A display of agricultural antiques, such as a butter churner and milk cans, tie into the homestead theme. The stamp of agriculture can be found everywhere in the form of barn doors, water tanks used as owerpots, silver Fleet Farm buckets acting as menu holders, ear tags to signify table numbers and a beer tap in the shape of a milk can. Television screens situated throughout play a video about Ebert Enterprises to help patrons learn more about the connection between restaurant and farm. The restaurant’s 99-person capacity makes it roomy enough to serve a large crowd yet small enough to feel cozy. Outside, a corn crib serves as one of the outdoor waiting areas and includes chairs set up around a re pit. People can also play games like giant Connect Four and bean bag toss while waiting for a table. “Our menu is fairly simple,” Jordan said. “We start with beef and go from there. At some point, we would like to add steaks, but we’re trying to walk before we run.” The Homestead Burger – a
Turn to EBERT | Page 6