Steven and Alaina Imhoff knew they wanted to expand their hog farming at Triple Creek Farms in southeast Iowa. And they were convinced that the industrial route wasn’t going to suit them. In 2019, they connected with Niman Ranch, which is a network of more than 600 small and mid-size farmers and ranchers across the United States. Niman farmers adhere to high standards of sustainable and humane farming practices. The Imhoffs immediately knew that Niman was the best path forward for their family.
“We really liked Niman Ranch’s concept of how they wanted to raise the hogs,” says Alaina. “The very humane nature of how they raise their hogs with access to the outdoors, really reminded me of how I raised my 4-H animals [when I was a child]. The quality of meat, you can taste it…you can tell when an animal has been raised on bedding and dirt versus concrete.”
Niman Ranch offers a guaranteed market for its farmers’ and ranchers’ products in exchange for a high standard of practices. Steven says that this gave the Imhoffs the opportunity to invest in quality equipment that make other aspects of day-to-day farm life easier. The Imhoffs were also able to begin raising hogs for Niman Ranch using their current farmland and facilities, rather than investing in expensive conventional housing.
“You can [raise hogs] on a smaller scale, and you don’t have to have a million-dollar-plus investment to get started,” Steven says. “You’re able to work with smaller facilities, smaller numbers, be more hands-on, and have an investment of your own, versus working for somebody else.”
Right now, Steven and Alaina both work off-farm jobs. They say that Niman Ranch is providing an additional path to grow their business—and, hopefully, work full-time on the farm one day.
“For a lot of people in the second generation—or however many generations—down, you’re probably going to have to have another job for a while before transitioning to the farm full-time, unless [your family has] a really large farm operation,” says Alaina.
While her family has been farming for at least four generations, there isn’t enough land for all of Alaina’s siblings to return to the family farm. And these days, few new farmers can afford to buy land, according to Alaina: In the Imhoffs’ area of Iowa, farmland can sell for as high as US$25,000 per acre.
Alaina emphasizes that more support is needed for young and beginning farmers, particularly to get started raising hogs. As a middle and high school agriculture teacher, she finds joy in educating the next generation about how to raise animals sustainably and humanely—and different ways to build a profitable small business, such as through Niman Ranch.
“Farmers get a bad reputation, they don’t ever seem to get the good promoted about them,” says Alaina. “There are so many amazing farmers out there raising the best product they can, no matter what method they’re utilizing, to feed this growing world.”
Young folks’ passion for agriculture and work advocating for it brings Alaina hope. She and her students speak with policymakers every year about the importance of agricultural education, aiming to show state legislators that young people are interested in working in agriculture and need support.
At home, Steven and Alaina are working to pass an environmentally and economically sustainable business to the next generation. Both of their children are raising their own animals and love helping out on the farm.
“Educating the kids, to me, is the actually most rewarding part of being a farmer,” says Alaina.
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Photo courtesy of Lauren McConachie, Unsplash
