John Bayless is a thirdgeneration farmer. He now operates Bayless Farms with the help of his family, including his 76-year-old father, Rabon.
From milk to meat After three generations of dairy farming, Bayless Farms turns to beef BY JEN CALHOUN
T
he history of Bayless Farms goes all the way back to 1929, when Henry Bayless bought 30 acres of land to grow cotton and soybeans on. A single cow provided milk for the family.
That same year, the stock market crashed, and the U.S. economy tanked. The country was thrown into the Great Depression. Thankfully, the Bayless family and their farm survived. By the late 1940s and early 1950s, Henry Bayless had started milking 12 | November/December 2017
more cows and selling the milk for profit. With the help of Henry’s son, Rabon, the farm grew to a full-fledged dairy operation on 900 acres. The Bayless farm survives today. But times have changed, says John Bayless, Rabon’s son and Henry’s grandson. “Back in the ’40s, ’50s, ’60s and even the ’70s, you could make good money farming,” John Bayless says. “You could buy land and pay for it. It’s been tough to do that lately, especially over the last 20 years.” Recent struggles finding labor and maintaining dairy cows caused the thirdgeneration farmer to rethink dairy farming. Bayless still wanted to farm, and he still
wanted a legacy for his children, Hank, 14, and Luke, 7. “Milk prices were staying the same, however, and the costs associated with operating a dairy farm were growing. “We made the decision that we were either going to do something different or quit,” Bayless says. After more than 85 years and three generations of farm life, quitting didn’t feel like an option. So in November 2016, the family sold their dairy herd and went into the beef cattle business. The switch allowed Bayless to take on a full-time job outside the farm, while keeping the farm going for the next generation. His father, Rabon, continues to help, as do his sons. Ardmore Telephone Company