AG Mag Northern Illinois
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PUBLICATION • SUMMER 2020
A fourth-generati on farm family is fin d ing success helping people live a healthier life wh ile te place that makes nding to the it all possible, or as they like to say care of the earth ... “Take , take care of each other”
ALSO INSIDE ...
It was the cough heard ’round the world ... How a pandemic disrupted the world’s supply chain Renewable energy companies have their eye on the Sauk Valley ... AND MORE
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AG Mag Northern Illinois
Summer 2020
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PUBLICATION
Index
INDEX CONTINUED ON PAGE 4
REGENERATIONS A
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Magazine Editors Kathleen Schultz & Rusty Schrader
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Advertising Director, General Manager Jennifer Heintzelman
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Publisher Don T. Bricker
COVERSTORY
Page Design Rusty Schrader
A fourth-generation farm family is finding success with their approach to helping people live a healthier lifestyle while tending to the place that makes it all possible, or as they like to say ... “Take care of the earth, take care of each other.”
Published by Sauk Valley Media 113 S. Peoria Ave. Dixon, IL 61081 815-284-2224
Articles and advertisements are the property of Sauk Valley Media. No portion of the Northern Illinois Ag Mag may be reproduced without the written consent of the publisher. Ad content is not the responsibility of Sauk Valley Media. The information in this magazine is believed to be accurate; however, Sauk Valley Media cannot and does not guarantee its accuracy. Sauk Valley Media cannot and will not be held liable for the quality or performance of goods and services provided by advertisers listed in any portion of this magazine.
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Sales • Farm Management • Market Evaluations Lee County:
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Ogle County:
98 +/- Acres Scott Twp. 90 +/- tillable, just SW of Davis Junction. 5.2 Acres E of Oregon w/lovely ranch home & great 36x48 shed.
Whiteside County:
143 +/- acres Clyde Twp. 138 +/- tillable. Price Reduced! 118 +/- acres Jordan dan da n Tw Twp. p. 1 103.5 +/- tillable. LD SO 715,000 bushel grain storage setup in fantastic Sterling location!
Dekalb County:
Matt Hermes, Designated Managing Broker
158+/- Acres just N of Sycamore. Apx 99% tillable, excellent soils.
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CHAIN REACTION
FARM LIVIN’ IS THE LIFE FOR HIM
It was a cough heard ’round the world ... Once the coronavirus started toppling dominoes, they kept falling until they disrupted a global economy, snapping the links of a supply chain that farmers are still struggling to repair
WHEN YOU WISH UPON A FARM ...
You find a successful business that taps into a couple’s passion for organic food at their farm and micro-brewery
PAGE 26
RENEWED INTEREST
Energy companies are keeping an eye on the Sauk Valley, and what they’re seeing is potential for solar and wind farms
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A Tampico farmer’s life is a lot like the land he tends to: there’s a little bit of everything in it, and no matter what he does – growing, harvesting, selling, serving – he goes all in
PAGE 15
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AG Mag
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Danielle Olson and Isaiah Jones stand near the market garden at Kinwood Farm with their son, Benaiah Jones, and their dog, Valley.
6 Summer 2020
STORY CODY CUTTER PHOTOS MICHAEL KRABBENHOEFT | FOR NORTHERN ILLINOIS AG MAG
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very member of a longtime family farm in eastern Henry County plays a role in its sucLINOI S cess, but there’s one family member N IL A ER the operation simply couldn’t do without: Mother Earth. Just ask the folks behind Kinwood Farm, just north of the village of Hooppole. The business is grounded in the belief that if COVERSTORY you take care of the planet, it’ll take care you – the foundation of regenerative farming. It’s living proof that it pays to be well-grounded, especially if you’re a family whose livelihood is built on being good stewards of the planet. MORE ON PAGE 84 G
A fourth-generation farm family is finding success with their approach to helping people live a healthier life while tending to the place that’s made it all possible, or as they like to say ...
“Take care of the earth, take care of each other.”
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 7 The family farm is run by Isaiah Jones and his wife, Danielle Olson. Cattle is their chief product, but they have expanded this year to include a market garden and orchard, and they’re doing more with chickens as well. The roots of the family tree stretch back to the mid-1800s, when the Jones’ great-greatgrandparents came to Illinois from Alsace, France, settling down near Hooppole to raise crops and livestock. The farm continued to prosper and grow and the family farm’s footprint got bigger, including the purchase of a 197-acre parcel belonging to Jones’ parents, Bruce and Becky Jones.
Today, as more and more people embrace healthier lifestyles, especially during the pandemic, Kinwood just keeps on growing. “We’ve been slowly growing, but recently there seems to be a real slew of people interested in natural foods and local sourcing,” Olson said. The farm’s formula for success is built on “real food that restores body, mind, and land.” According to regenerativeagriculturedefinition.com, regenerative agriculture is a system of farming principles and practices aimed at increasing biodiversity, enriching soils, improving watersheds, and enhancing the ecosystem. CONTINUED ON PAGE 104
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A herd of cattle enjoys a shady area at Kinwood Farm in June. Temporary fencing is used to allow cattle to graze in different areas each day on the 197-acre farm. It’s part of the owners’ regenerative method of farming.
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 8
You won’t find any chemicals wafting over the fields to keep weeds at bay at Kinwood Farm. “It looks a little different than your typical field – there’s no soil to be seen,” said Danielle Olson, shown here pulling weeds in the farm’s market garden. “We have wood chips in the middle of the rows and when we plant something, we try to cover it with hay as quick as possible.”
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While the cattle, sheep and chickens feast on healthy grass, fresh water is used to grow the many fruits and vegetables at the market garden and orchard. Olson spearheaded the garden, which aims to provide as much of someone’s diet as possible. The farm’s inventory is enough to make any lover of a healthy diet green with envy: onions, kale, peas, strawberries, asparagus, corn, plums, apples, peaches, pears, cherries, potatoes, peppers, tomatoes, sweet potatoes, baby cucumbers and green beans are just some of the produce Kinwood produces. Keeping its leafy greens healthy keeps the animals healthy, and that’s good for people, too – and you won’t find any chemicals here. “It looks a little different than your typical field – there’s no soil to be seen,” Olson said. “We have wood chips in the middle of the rows and when we plant something, we try to cover it with hay as quick as possible.” With that kind of management, not much weeding needs to be done. CONTINUED ON PAGE 114
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 10 “The life in the soil is similar to us humans; plants like it right around 70 to 80 degrees and not too oversaturated or too dry,” Jones said. “We’re keeping the soil covered, which keeps it cool. The soil life really prefers that, and that will help the plants grow healthier. It’s really the microbes in the soil that help feed the plant.” Jones said he and his wife “have to have a holistic management practice that really considers every step of the process.” For example, a healthy tomato will have much more lycopene – a hydrocarbon that gives it its red color, and can be an anti-cancer nutrient, Jones said. “It’s feeding your body chemistry in a healthy way that does not allow an environment that cancer can grow in.” One of the couple’s goals is to return the farm to the savanna-like landscape that existed hundreds of years ago. “It’s basically working in harmony with natural patterns,” Jones said. “A lot of it is keeping the soil covered, and in a natural environment there is a lot of diversity.” As for the livestock, “We try to manage with a lot of diversity in terms of animals,” Jones said. Kinwood uses movable fencing to allow the cattle to graze in different areas, making it easier for the plants to recover and regrow, Jones said. Trees are unaltered in an effort to provide more shade and thus more grass. CONTINUED ON PAGE 144
This hairy cow peers out from a herd of Belted Galloway at Kinwood Farm in June. The farm has about 47 head of cattle that are moved to fresh grass each day to prevent damage to grazing areas on the farm.
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Why did the chickens cross the field? As part of Kinwood Farm’s regenerative method of farming, poultry pile in to their “eggmobile” and head out on the open fields for a bite to eat. After the cattle graze on a section of land, chickens and hens are hauled in their Little Deuce Coop to peck away at the remaining grass. “They’ll eat down the grass for us and we don’t have to mow it,” Danielle Olson (below left) said. “That also helps limit the amount of bacteria, parasites and sickness among them, because they are going to fresh bedding every day.” The chickens also eat the bugs attracted to the cow pies.
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To find some fresh grass to graze on Kinwood Farm’s chickens are also housed in “chicken tractors.” The “tractors” are actually movable pens that provide chickens with shelter, water and food, and a fresh spot to peck away at bugs and grass. Below, Isaiah Jones checks on the flock in the structures.
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11 “You actually produce a lot more feed for the animals, and at the same time it’s beneficial for the plants; you’re stimulating growth when you graze them, as long as you don’t graze them too low. “With healthy plants, you’re going to have healthy animals. Their medicine is their food.” After the cattle graze, black-and-white frizzled barred rock chickens and brown-colored spent hens come in and work with the remaining grass. They are housed in an “eggmobile” that’s pulled on to various parts of the grounds once a day; the poultry can roam as much as a couple of hundred yards away from the coop. “They’ll eat down the grass for us and we don’t have to mow it,” Olson said. “That also helps limit the amount of bacteria, parasites and sickness among them, because they are going to fresh bedding every day.” The farm has an online store at kinwoodfarm.com where items can be ordered and picked up at locations every other Friday in Dixon, DeKalb, Elburn, Wheaton, Elmhurst and Bolingbrook; and every other Saturday in Geneseo and Moline. Kinwood’s way of farming is a process the couple enjoys sharing with others, especially with children. They open the farm to home-schooled children for farm lessons and have farm school days, as well as harvest parties and planting days open to the public. Opening the farm to the public helps develops a sense of transparency when most of the food industry is “in the dark,” Jones said. “If they know their farmer and know where their food is coming from, you develop that relationship.” The family enjoys their work. Jones’ parents, Bruce and Becky Jones, own the land, and several of Jones’ nine siblings work on the farm. That family connection even gave birth to the farm’s name: Kinwood, which comes from family (kin) and their connection to their wooded land. Isaiah Jones began managing the farm 5 years ago with 13 head of belted Galloways cattle. He’s now got nearly 50 head. “What got me excited was using animals to regenerate the land,” Jones said. “That’s how I got the cattle, and I heard a bunch of stories about people doing this, and it worked extremely well.” The couple’s children, Gunnar, 7, and Benaiah, 1, will be the fifth generation of family farmers, should they choose to go that route. If they do, their parents will be there right beside them, with dirt under their nails and a smile on his face, helping guide them down the same path they’ve travelled. “It’s a lot of work, but we really, really enjoy it,” Jones said. “It’s exciting. It’s really what keeps us going.” n
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More information 28009 Seyller Road, Prophetstown 307-258-2926 Online: kinwoodfarm.com The farm’s website offers growing tips, a schedule of events hosted at the farm, a blog, photos, and more. Customers also can place orders through the website for pickup or delivery to one of the pickup sites listed on their site.
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Farm livin’ is the life for him A Tampico farmer’s life is a lot like the land he tends to: there’s a little bit of everything in it, and no matter what he does — growing, harvesting, selling, serving — he goes all in
Scott Wetzell STORY BEGINS ON NEXT PAGE
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STORY SARAH FORD PHOTOS MICHAEL KRABBENHOEFT | FOR NORTHERN ILLINOIS AG MAG
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About IBA checkoff
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imes may be changing for farmers in America, but there’s a timelessness and sense of history when stepping foot on the Wetzell Farm at 24777 Star Road in Tampico. Scott Wetzell has been farming here since 2005; his grandparents purchased the farm in 1972, after taking over from Wetzell’s great-grandparents, who also lived and worked at the homestead mid-century. Now Wetzell and his wife, Miranda, raise their family here – daughters Madison, 12, and Harper, 9, plus a blue heeler/ border collie mix that works the cattle. The girls are involved with 4-H in the Hume Happy Hustlers Club, and Miranda just finished up her first year of teaching at Bureau Valley, after spending 14 years in the Prophetstown School District. Wetzell was born and raised in the Tampico area, first working on the farm with his grandfather in 1996. He started college with an interest in becoming a veterinarian, but ended up earning two associate degrees from Black Hawk College – one in agribusiness and one in ag production. His farmyard is home to a silo built in 1976, machine and cattle sheds, an old red barn once home to pigs, and piles of homegrown feed. Now with just under 500 acres to manage – half he owns, half he rents – growing corn, soybeans and seed corn for Pioneer, and wheat and hay for the livestock keeps him busy 7 days a week. “It’s a little bit of everything,” he says as he scopes the landscape that grows greener by the day. Besides supplements, nearly all of his cattle’s feed is grown on his farm. With the COVID-19 pandemic, life on the farm has been a little less crowded, but not necessarily any less hectic. Wetzell has about 80 head of cattle, including four cows, two with calves and two more on the way. Normally he keeps a herd of 250, with a maximum of 300, but he had to buy fewer this year due to COVID-19. He purchased his herd in November and he normally sells in late April or early May, although with restaurants temporarily closed and buyers scarce, he’s had to push that sell date back this year. As if that’s not enough work for this farmer and rancher, Wetzell also serves as one of two district checkoff directors for the Illinois Beef Association (illinoisbeef.com). There are seven districts in Illinois, each with two elected directors, with a primary focus on promotion, education, and consumer education. The IBA also has a policy division, which deals more in lobbying. So what exactly does a checkoff director do? Every time a beef animal is sold, $1 is collected for the National Cattlemen Feed Association; out of that, 50 cents supports the organization on a federal level, and 50 cents stays with the state. CONTINUED ON PAGE 174
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The Illinois Beef Association’s Checkoff Division is the Qualified State Beef Council in Illinois and has a long history of providing a path for cattlemen to promote their product through their checkoff program. The Illinois Beef Checkoff began in 1983 as a voluntary 50-cent per head assessment paid by cattlemen. That state program was halted when federal legislation was passed in the 1985 Farm Bill establishing the national checkoff program. That national checkoff went into effect October 1, 1986. A national referendum was held in 1988 CHECKOFF DIRECTORS to continue the DISTRICT 1 national $1 checkJustin Rahn, Mount Carroll – Term expires: off. That vote passed 2022 nationwide with a Don Brown, Davis – Term expires 2020 79% favorable vote. DISTRICT 2 Illinois cattle owners Scott Wetzell, Tampico – Term expires: 2023 voted 83% favorable DISTRICT 3 in that referendum. Ken Dau,Sheridan – Term expires 2022 In February 2015, Chip Foster, Maple Park — Term expires 2023 Illinois cattlemen DISTRICT 4 completed a petiTerry Boydstun, Abingdon — Term expires 2022 tion and referendum Shannon Welsh, Blandinsville – Term expires process to reinstate 2020 the state checkoff. DISTRICT 5 The statewide vote T.J. Curtin, Blue Mound – Term expires: 2022 to restart the state Sara Prescott,Sherman –Term expires: 2020 checkoff passed by DISTRICT 6 wide margin, with Chase Brown,Warrensburg –Term expires: 2025 88% voting yes. Steve Carruthers,Bingham –Term expires: 2020 Beginning in July DISTRICT 7 2015, Illinois has Ed Billingsley,Goreville –Term expires: 2023 had two beef checkJim Meller,Anna – Term expires: 2022 offs totaling $1.50 per head working to increase demand for beef. Both programs are controlled by cattlemen serving on the IBA Board of Governors Checkoff Division. The Illinois Beef Checkoff is collected on all cattle sold in Illinois and differs from the national checkoff program in two major ways: • The 50 cent state checkoff is refundable by contacting IBA • The state checkoff can address a broader area of programs – Source (and for more information on the program): illinoisbeef.com/checkoff
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know where their meat comes from and how it was handled. In reflecting on the past 3 months and the fallout from the panIllinois also adds another 50 cents per animal sold, so $1.50 demic, Wetzell said the problem hasn’t been that there’s a meat is ultimately collected for funding for educational efforts. The shortage, but rather logistical issues of getting the product where program started in 1985 with the farm bill, so it’s a federally regu- it needs to be. Additionally, processing plants have been shutting lated program operating under federal guidelines. down, although the pork industry has taken a harder hit. Wetzell serves as chairman Division 2, he’s the president of the In April, there were no cattle even coming into the market. WetWhiteside County Cattlemen’s Association, and he’s also a mem- zell expects the markets to recover in 20 months to 2 years, when ber of the Farm Bureau board. buyers can start moving cattle through again at full capacity.      As division chair, he’s committed to five or six meetings a year Another impact of COVID-19 has been pricing discrepancies in in Springfield, although the actual the market. Producers were getting number has proven to be a little bit a price that was not reflected in the higher. He was first elected to the IBA sale price on the Chicago Mercantile in 2017 after gathering 51 signatures Exchange. of area cattle farmers to make it onto The IBA, along with other industry the not-very-competitive ballot. leaders, signed a letter to the Depart“If I’m giving my time to somement of Justice acknowledging the thing, I go all in,� he said. possibility of price gouging in the COVID-19 has had a measurable wake of COVID-19. Meat could be impact on the association’s activities sold at 90 cents a pound to packers, this year, with a hiatus in activity as but in the market it would sell from the stay-at-home orders continued $4 up to $18 per pound, especially through the spring. Wetzell says the for finer cuts. main focus of IBA has been radio So, while beef prices have gone up, and print in various farm publicait wasn’t necessarily a boon for the tions, more so in May when it’s beef farmers. month. “I’m hoping there’s more openness However, he admits this whole year on what packers are paying. We don’t has been thrown off, both with budsee what they pay for cattle,� he says gets and plans. The decision recently of the current system. A bill is in the was made to cancel the summer works that would mandate transparconference and annual meeting; ency on those numbers. alternatives are in the works. Wetzell estimates that suppliers In a normal year, an element of the could be seeing only 8% to 10% of association’s focus has been utilizing what they bought. “I’m selling on the popular tagline “Beef – It’s What’s what was reported on last week, but for Dinner� which has been rolled is it accurate?� out again in the past couple of years. He adds that 80% of beef is proNormally, Wetzell keeps a herd of 250 to 300 catThe association also worked with several universities on research tle on his farm, but he had to buy fewer this year cessed by three different companies, as smaller and more local markets funding for educational projects; due to COVID-19. have dried up over the years. built out a social media presence He expects a brighter future for the industry, though. With the that’s proven to be a valuable investment; collaborated with the recent passage of the USMCA trade deal, he expects an increase Junior Beef Association and their livestock programs; and sponof beef buyers from Mexico. The trade deal also should help with sored Illinois Farm Families and their programs. The past two years, IBA was involved in that organization’s Chi- the grain markets, as both Mexico and Canada are large importcago Gourmet Festival, which included a chili cook-off at Millen- ers. “The deal is signed – as long as they don’t try to mess with it or nium Park. change it, it should be a good thing.�   IBA also helps organize animal handling training through the As a volunteer with all these beef organizations, Wetzell has Beef Quality Assurance program. Companies such as Tyson and proven himself to be what a farmer in America was built to be Cargill won’t buy cattle unless the farmers are properly certi– industrious, dedicated, community-oriented, engaged, and fied through an animal handling program; this ensures that the doing what it takes to feed the people of the nation. n animals have been treated humanely, since consumers want to
3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 16
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C O R O N A V I R U S
18 Summer 2020
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STORY JEFF HELFRICH PHOTOS ALEX T. PASCHAL FOR NORTHERN ILLINOIS AG MAG
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fter a tumultuous 2019 in which the weather played havoc with crop production, local farmers were hoping this year’s ride to the market wouldn’t be as bumpy. It turns out a pandemic had other plans. The COVID-19 pandemic has interrupted the agricultural supply chain. The prices of livestock and grain have dropped. Slaughter plants have closed because of COVID-19 outbreaks. Ethanol plants aren’t taking grain because of low oil prices. With restaurants closed, meat demand has changed. “Last year was a nightmare with spring planting and unplanted acres and an unending harvest,” Ogle County Farm
Bureau Manager Ron Kern said. “Hog guys were looking for a rebound this year, and it decimated their market. The cow market is torpedoed. Grain is bad due to ethanol.” Ogle County is among the top 10 livestock producers in the state. Farmers like Keith Poole of Polo, who raises hogs and grain, are being forced to hold on to their animals because no one is buying them. In addition, trade and tariff issues over the past few years have hurt their income, leaving them without a cushion when the pandemic hit. CONTINUED ON PAGE 204
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 19 Before the virus, a record number of hogs were being produced industrywide, and that’s resulted in crowded hog houses. Poole knows of people who are keeping three times as many pigs in a barn as they should. Poole’s hogs are backing up, too, but he still has options. “I can hold them longer or double stock in our other barn I could move them outside. The worst-case scenario is euthanasia, but no farmer wants to start that,” he said, “But I think it might become necessary. “There’s been a major supply chain disruption, and it’s frustrating for all the farmers in the county.” Hormel’s Rochelle Foods plant is an example of that disruption. Meat is packaged at the plant, which had to be closed April 17 because of a COVID19 outbreak, and didn’t reopen until May 4. All of its nearly 900 employees were tested and quarantined at home for 2 weeks while the plant was vigorously cleaned. CONTINUED ON PAGE 214
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 20 The industry also wasn’t prepared for the shift in demand that occurred when restaurants closed, Poole said. The pandemic forced people to adjust their buying habits. Bacon, which once was a top commodity, is now one of the lowest. A third of the corn Poole produces each year is sold to be turned into ethanol. Because there are plants in Rochelle, Lena and Monroe, Ogle County and the surrounding area is a major grain supplier, but those plants have either been closed or they didn’t want the corn because they couldn’t make any money in a time when fewer people were driving. Last year’s bad weather hurt Poole’s corn crop, and he already was operating at half capacity before the pandemic. To offset some of his losses, he plans to work with a $19 billion USDA effort, the Coronavirus Food Assistance Program, which is working to buy up crops and make direct payments to farmers. Although farmers finally were allowed to apply for payroll protection through the federal CARES Act, that approval came late, and there wasn’t much money left in the fund by the time they applied, Kern said. The USDA program will help, but won’t come close to offsetting losses, he said. “Nobody knows where the end of the tunnel is. You keep looking for a light. But we can’t see one right now.” As for the planting season, the weather so far has been cooperative, and farmers have
been able to get the resources they need to get started. Producers will keep plugging away despite the pandemic, and, like past difficulties, this too shall pass, said Poole, whose family has been farming now for more than 150 years. “This industry has weathered a lot of stuff, and I’m sure we’ll weather this one,” he said. “The sooner we can get everything back up and running is when this will start to be remedied.”
COVID and cattle The cattle industry, too, is suffering. In January, Justin Rahn was in Cancun. That was where he first started reading news of COVID-19. Shortly after returning, the Polo and Mount Carroll area farmer sold his cattle in February as he usually does. It turns out he did it at just the right time. “I had several looks at my cattle when I got back and they gave me bad prices,” Rahn said. “The next week it went up $5 and I got rid of them. It ended up being a good time. It was by luck. After, it fell $35. If I wouldn’t have gotten out, it would have been more of a bloodbath.” Rahn has around 100 feedlot steers and 150 cows. In addition to selling in February, he sells cows throughout the year. Prices have been in the place where he’s taking a loss. Circumstances have also pushed back his usual process to start back over. CONTINUED ON PAGE 224
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Justin Rahn surveys his herd in a pasture near Polo.
3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 21 “Am I going to go broke tomorrow? No,” Rahn said. “ But it’s a financial strain on farmers. I bought cows to fill the feedlot back up in February and it’s fallen since.” The current value of Rahn’s cattle isn’t going to pay the bills, he said. The possibility of getting rid of them if he had to is 8 to 10 weeks out. People have called him and asked wheth-
er they could buy beef directly. Other farmers have had the same sort of calls. Some pig farmers have taken people up on their offers to get rid of their livestock and avoid euthanasia (see story on page 24). Things won’t come to that for beef farmers, Rahn said, and smaller processing plants are booked up for months anyways. CONTINUED ON PAGE 234
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 22 Rahn is most frustrated by misconceptions about the supply chain that suggest that there’s a shortage of beef. “They say there’s a lack of meat in stores,” Rahn said. “In reality, we have lots full of animals ready to go but we can’t get them to markets. It’s a bad situation.” President Donald Trump signed an executive order in May mandating that meat processing plants stay open. That may not change much due to the nature of COVID-19 outbreaks. “They shut down and clean up,” Kern said. “When they come back and reopen, if 400 of 1,200 have it, they’re not coming back. The other 800, they’re saying they might not want to go, so there’s absenteeism. They’re only running at 50 percent
capacity at best. And you can’t grab people off the street to do that work.” It is the hope of Rahn and other farmers that the economy gets back to where it was before the pandemic. He believes it’ll be slow. It’s also his hope that he’ll see the same faces in business in August that he saw in January. “We just want normal, open markets,” Rahn said. “But this is going to make some people go bankrupt.” Rahn said the situation will make him a better manager with cutting costs and expenses. He farms grain as well, which is also down due to bad weather last year and ethanol plants being shut down or at minimal capacity. He’s being hit on both sides. He said what makes him “not sleep at night is knowing I’m losing money no matter what I’ll be working on the next day.” n
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In line for swine .... Pickups, semis, and trailers lined about a half mile of Gurler Road on May 2 as customers waited in line to purchase pigs from Mike Pfieffer in rural Ashton. People traveled from Illinois, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan to buy the hogs, which Pfieffer was selling for $100 per head. Each vehicle was allowed up to five hogs per person.
Heads, M they win People who answered Mike Pfeiffer’s hog call got a bargain when they bought hogs for a hundred bucks a head. It was the Ashton farmer’s solution to a pressing problem: what to do with pigs he couldn’t get to market
ike Pfeiffer didn’t come up with the idea to sell his pigs individually on his own. The Ashton farmer was watching TV and learned of a South Carolina couple that did the same and had success. “I told my wife that we had to do it,” Pfeiffer said. “We had to avoid euthanasia and burying them.” As the COVID-19 pandemic closed meat packing plants around the country, the supply chains were interrupted, leaving farmers like Pfeiffer without anywhere to offload their pigs. CONTINUED ON PAGE 254
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 24
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When too many are crammed into a pen, it encourages cannibalism among the herd and food costs rise. The only other option is paying to euthanize and bury the pigs. So Pfeiffer’s wife, Joan, took to Facebook to advertise the pigs for sale to individuals at a cost of $100 a head. “I was overwhelmed by the people that called and asked,� Pfeiffer said. “We had to turn people away. We had people from Missouri, Kentucky and Minnesota call about the pigs.� It didn’t take long for Pfeiffer to sell just over the 200 pigs that he had available. Buyers had to bring their own trailers and pay in cash. The buyers likely had to process the pigs themselves, the way a deer would be after being killed. Pfeiffer checked with local processors and was told they didn’t have any slots open. Pfeiffer’s pigs were market ready and between 270 and 300 pounds. They were raised on his family farm, non-GMO and antibiotic-free. Normally, he’d get around 45 cents per pound for the pigs. The $100 pricetag basically allowed him to break even, he said. Back in May, Pfeiffer said his Tyson buyer “told me to wait four weeks ago,� Pfeiffer said. “That’s when we last sold. Usually it’s once a week. He had to refuse 25 semi loads that week.� Pfeiffer said he believes the fallout from the pandemic will continue to cut down on capacity. Pfeiffer has been raising pigs for more than 40 years and usually produces about 3,200 a year. Usually, pigs support his grain farming operations. That’s another aspect of his business that has taken a hit, with the ethanol market down and the repurcussions of last year’s bad weather still being felt. “I’ve never seen anything like it,� Pfeiffer said. “I hope I never see anything like it again.� n
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t all started with a simple idea: Grow some vegetables in a backyard garden and save some money. As she picked tomatoes and cucumbers from that little backyard garden, Penny Peterson said she never imagined the seeds she was planting would someday grow into a 10-acre family farm and business where more than a hundred different varieties of organic vegetables, hops, micro-greens, herbs, fruits, and garden plants are grown. But the farm is only half of the story. In 2016 she and her husband, Nate, followed another dream when Nate’s hobby of brewing beer became the basis for opening an artisan craft micro-brewery, and so it was that a wish came true: Wishful Acres Farm & Brewery in Lena was born. CONTINUED ON PAGE 294
Cheers! Penny and Nate Peterson are the wishful thinkers behind Wishful Acres Farm & Brewery in Lena. The business grows more than a hundred different varieties of organic produce and plants and is home to an artisan craft micro-brewery. “When we think back and look at where we came from, through the hard years, it’s hard to believe this is our life,” Penny said. “We’re so grateful, thankful.”
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 27 “When we think back and look at where we came from, through the hard years, it’s hard to believe this is our life,� Penny said. “We’re so grateful, thankful.� Located just outside Freeport, the farm and brewery is gaining attention as locals as well as day trippers stop in on the weekends to taste what Nate’s brewing, often using hops grown on the family farm. Penny said he’s always working on new beers and this summer he’s experimenting with a fruit beer using peaches and mangos. “We probably make two new beers a month,� Penny said. Wishful Acres also feature an on-site tap room, bar, and beer garden. The brewing started out much like the gardening idea. Back in the mid-2000s, Penny gave Nate a beer making kit as a present and gently suggested that if he brewed his own beer, they could save a little money. It did more than just save a little money: now it’s making them some money. Their beer is handcrafted at the farm brewery in small batches and they keep about a dozen on tap each week, including their homemade root beer, and the selection changes frequently. Pretty good for a couple who didn’t even having a farming background. Penny said she grew up in Freeport and each summer her family had a backyard garden, a tradition she carried on when she had her own home. After the arrival of her first son in 2003 she became more driven to build up the garden and sought out fresh fruits and vegetables at local farmers markets. Soon, her trips to markets became a chance to ask farmers questions and she soaked up their lessons on growing and harvesting. She said she’s also an avid reader. “Everything I learned, I taught myself from reading many books,� Penny said. Penny expanded her garden in 2009 when she and Nate rented a half-acre plot of farmland just outside of town. It’s there that the business’ name was born  – they wished that they had their own farm, so they called their growing business Wishful Acres Farm. In 2011 she and Nate found an opportunity they couldn’t pass up: the chance to buy a 10-acre farm. CONTINUED ON PAGE 314
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Looking for some topflight micro-brews? From the mildest berry wit to a hearty stout, Wishful Acres has a style to please most everyone – and Nate Peterson (above) grows a variety of hops on the farm for the beers he brews.
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 29 Penny admits it wasn’t a path she had imagined. She had gone to school as a business major and after graduating she worked as a web developer and in marketing. Those experiences are proving valuable, though, as she maintains the farm’s website and does its marketing, as well as tending to the daily farm and helping with the brewery. While there’s some help from their three school-age sons, most of the work of the farm and brewery falls on Nate and Penny. The Petersons grow more than 100 organic vegetables, herbs, and fruits – from A to Z, argula to zucchini – and sell a portion of their harvest to members of a Community Supported Agriculture program. The business doesn’t sell to the general public. The way the program works is that people sign on as a “shareholder” member of the farm for a season – $429 for a whole season half-share or $858 for a whole-season full share. Those people get a share of the crops – at least 3/4 bushel basket of mixed produce each week for a 22-week season – that they pick up at the farm. A share is enough feed a family of 2 to 4 people for a week. Shareholders come on board on a first-come, first-serve basis, and this year’s shares are already sold out. People can get on the farm’s Wait List, but they could be waiting awhile. The farm’s current wait list is a few years long – a testament to the popularity of the Petersons’ products. Mia Rudolph of Freeport has been buying the Petersons’ vegetables and herbs through their CSA for the past 6 years. “I know the value of farming and I love to go to the farm and see how food is made, and have my children make that connection too,” Rudolph said. “I like to get the vegetables on Friday, so when I go to the store I can plan my meals around what we received that week in the CSA,” Rudolph said. “If we get bok choy then that week we might have steamed bok choy in a stir fry. I have to be creative.” CONTINUED ON PAGE 324
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3CONTINUED FROM PAGE 31 What started as a connection through the CSA blossomed over the years between the Rudolph and Peterson families. They have children of similar ages and interests. When the taproom opened, Rudolph said it became a great place to gather too. Her husband orders his favorite, the Unicorn Tears brew, while she alternates between a red ale and dark brew and their children request the homemade root beer on tap before they settle in to play cards and watch the farm cats roam around. “Wishful Acres is very family orientated,” Rudolph said. The tap room is also a gallery for Rudolph’s artwork, a collection of acrylic paintings on canvas featuring animals. Visitors can see and purchase her paintings of a cow. Rudolph, who works during the day as a nurse managing patients, said she grew up on a farm and her paintings are an appreciation for the beauty of local animals and an outlet for her creativity. Many visitors to the Petersons’ farm and tap room soon become friends, greeting them with a wave and enjoying the chance to sit back, relax and sip a freshly brewed a beer. “We’ve traveled around the U.S., we’ve visited other local breweries but I have to say we are spoiled by Nate because we’ve gotten so used to such a good quality beer,” Rudolph said. n
Taproom bar and brewery 4679 N. Flansburg Road, Lena Open for outdoor seating or carryout: 4-8 p.m. Friday, 1-8 p.m. Saturday, 1-5 p.m. Sunday Online: wishfulacresfarm.com and on Facebook
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he renewable energy boom continues to crop up in the Sauk Valley. Several wind and solar projects have been completed or are in the works in the area, including two wind farms upgrading their fleets of turbines in Lee County, a new wind farm coming to fruition after years of delays, and plans for two of the largest solar farms in the state. Duke Energy Renewable Solar LLC is looking to develop a utility-grade solar farm south of Dixon on about 4,000 acres south of the industrial park on state Route 26 in South Dixon Township. The project is in early development stages, and long-term leases have been negotiated and signed by multiple landowners. The details are being worked out, but it would create 200 to 500 megawatts of power per year and be an investment of up to $450 million. In March, the Quad Cities Regional Economic Development Authority agreed to expand its enterprise zone boundaries for the project, which could go online in 2023. In May 2019, the Lee County Board approved Junction Solar LLC, of Minnesota-based Geronimo Energy, to build a 100-megawatt solar farm on about 760 acres of farmland in Alto and Reynolds townships. The Green River Wind Farm, also owned by Geronimo, went
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operational last year with 74 turbines across 13,000 acres in Lee and Whiteside counties north of Walnut. In April 2019, the County Board signed off on the Big Sky Wind Farm’s project to decommission its 58 turbines in southern Lee County near Ohio and replace up to 51 with upgraded models. In 2018, the Mendota Hills Wind Farm, the state’s first wind farm built 16 years ago, replaced its 63 turbines with 29 upgraded ones. Recently, a Lee County wind farm began the process to expand its footprint by up to 28 turbines. The 109.5-megawatt Shady Oaks Wind Farm near Compton went online in 2012 with 71 turbines. County zoning hearings took place in June to add 25 to 28 new wind turbines in Wyoming and Brooklyn townships. Last year, Shady Oaks 2 LLC lined up more than 20 lease agreements and wind easements with landowners in the southeastern area of the county across about 4,300 acres. Construction would begin around May 2021 and go online as early as October 2021. Shady Oaks is part of Oakville, Ontario-based Algonquin Power & Utilities Corp.’s Liberty Power Group, which includes about 1.7 gigawatts of hydroelectric, wind, solar, and thermal power systems. n
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