HEREFORDS
make the move K7
by B. Lynn Gordon photos courtesy K7 Herefords
After relocating, K7 Herefords found the space to expand.
A
March 2020
4-H project in 1968 that got out of hand is how Tom Heidt owner of K7 Herefords, Lockridge, IA describes his entrance into the purebred cattle business.
28
Growing up one of 11 children on a southwestern Wisconsin dairy farm, Tom learned hard work early from the hands-on daily chores of caring for animals. That experience transcended into his interest of learning as much as he could about raising and breeding beef cattle. Heidt lived in Wisconsin until making the decision in 2007 to move his family to Iowa. High land prices in Wisconsin made cost of production high and was limiting the ability to expand their Hereford herd.
Tom, his wife Jo, and children Victoria, Shane and Patti, relocated to southeastern Iowa, about 40 miles from Missouri and 40 miles from Illinois. They were able to purchase more acres and continue their strong focus of building a quality Hereford herd to about 100 cows. Oldest daughter, Victoria, currently lives in Loganville, WI, along with her husband Hank, and two young sons. Son, Shane lives near Des Moines and works at Waste Management in the energy recovery plant. Youngest daughter, Patti, lives at home, works second shift, and helps with the night shift cow checks, along with being the operation’s computer as-
sistant. Everyone comes together to put in their own weight, input, and talents.
BUILDING A MARKET In a step towards building their market in Iowa, K7 Herefords decided to host an annual bull and female sale rather than exclusively sell their cattle private treaty. Having a 50-year history in Herefords, with a little over a decade of that in Iowa, Heidt believed by conducting promotion for an onfarm bull sale would bring more visibility to his breeding program and a way to build a customer base. Interestingly, K7 Herefords is currently the only registered
thestockmanmag.com | THE STOCKMAN
