Field's Fresh Beef

Dan and Debbie Field are the owners of Field’s Fresh Beef in Almena, Kansas. Dan and Debbie raise their beef on their family farm, along with a sweet corn patch.  Dan and Debbie have around 200 head of cattle and use roughly 15 head for their processed beef operation; they also have about 2 acres that they use for sweet corn. Their cattle operation is a full time job for both Dan and Debbie and grow sweet corn as a part-time job. Other than their son, Dan and Debbie have no other employees. The Fields have been in operation for the past 5 years and have enjoyed being able to supply local beef to the area. Dan and Debbie also sell their beef in Longmont, Colorado and in the Kansas City area. They also sell at the local Farmer’s Market in Norton, as well as distribute to local people in the area. The Fields get their beef processed in Beaver City, Nebraska at a USDA inspected plant. Their beef products range from hamburger to polish dogs. 

Dan and Debbie’s business has grown mainly due to word of mouth, Facebook, and the distribution of their business cards. Using different methods of advertising has really helped their business grown.  Dan and Debbie feel that they are currently meeting the market with their beef, but feel that the market for sweet corn is always growing and is hard to keep up with. They hope their business continues to grow and feel they would be able to take on more as the market demanded. Dan and Debbie are currently not interested in selling to grocers currently, but hope to work towards it in the future. 

Dan and Debbie's Farmers Market Stand. 

R Family Farms

This little piggy went to market, this little piggy stayed home... At Kaden and Emily Roush's farm, all piggies are going to market. Kaden and Emily are the sole owners and operators of R Family Farms. Kaden has been raising and selling pigs his whole life, however, after marrying his wife, Emily, they started their own business of raising market hogs together. Emily works full time on the farm and Kaden works part time as he spends the rest of his hours working at a bank in Smith Center, Kansas. Kaden and Emily have worked hard to construct their new farm east of Lebanon, Kansas consisting of 5 barns all equip with enhanced outside access, automatic waters, and either electronic or bulk feeders. The use of electronic feeders is a fairly new way of feeding hogs. Kaden and Emily have electronic feeders in their gestation barn and farrowing house in order to give the sows the correct amount of feed to fit their individual needs during each sows gestation cycle. You can see the electronic feeders in both pictures directly below. 

Many of the concepts that Kaden and Emily have incorporated into their barns were in order to succeed in the GAP Program, Global Animal Partnnership Program. They are now a GAP Certified Level 3 Market Hog farm. Through their operation, they produce around 40 head of hogs a month and are hoping to increase to their maximum of 90 head a month within the next year. Kaden and Emily sell their hogs to Whole Foods Market in the Wichita and Kansas City areas. They also provide pork to families in the area when needed. When asked what advice they had to give to aspiring producers, Emily said, "Take advantage of government grants and loans when constructing or expanding." Though R Family Farms is fairly new, they have already experience success and there is no doubt they will continue expand and prosper in the years to come.

Rusty Pumpkin Farms

Sue Roush, along with her husband Kelly Roush, own a small farm 4 miles east of Lebanon, Kansas. With a 1/4-1/2 acre garden and 1 acre pumpkin and gourd patch, Sue keeps busy caring for her wide variety of crops. Sue's customer base has spread mainly by word of mouth and she hopes to continue to expand production in order to keep up with the growing demand. During the summer season, Sue has tomatoes, cantaloupes, watermelons, potatoes, and many other products, such as freshly baked bread, that she sells at the local farmers market in Smith Center, as well as in Down, Kansas and Red Cloud, Nebraska. Sue's main focus has shifted to pumpkins and squash during the fall which she sells to grocers, flower shops, directly from her farm, or at various stands around the area. Sue feels that her produce is considered value added due to the way she produces them. She cares for each of her plants individually in order to insure the best product for her customer. Be sure to look for Sue and her products in the upcoming season!