Illinois Farm Families Blog

On the grain side of our farm, it’s the size and cost of our equipment that shocks people. (Actually, the cost of equipment shocks me too...)

And when we go to the feedlot, people are really surprised at how much care we take with each animal. They’re fascinated with the ultrasound, and what we can predict about every heifer and steer.  

Even with 3,500 head of cattle, we still know each one individually.  Our animals are receiving a lot more care than you’d ever imagine, just driving by the farm.

So I’m really looking forward to the Field Moms visiting.  It’ll open up communications – and it’ll be fun and surprising for all of us.   

Lynn Martz
Larson Farms
Maple Park, Illinois

 

Giving farm tours isn’t new for us. We have always given tours each year for school teachers so students have a better understanding of where their food comes from. In June we hosted the Northern Illinois Football team and coaches for a farm tour. Coaches got to drive a tractor and see beef cattle be ultrasounded. Just like an athlete may be ultrasounded to scan muscle tissue and diagnose an injury, we use ultrasound at our farm to evaluate the muscle and fat tissue of our beef cattle. This data helps us to sort out and market the cattle better, providing quality beef products for you.

The evening was wrapped up with, of course, lots of steak to eat. For many of the players it was their first time on a farm. I kidded with them that their interests with climbing on equipment and weighing themselves as a group on the big truck scale are the same highlights that our kindergarten student groups enjoy too. 

Some of the trivia information we gave the team was one cow hide can be made into 10 footballs. Footballs are made of four pieces of leather stitched together. Leather laces along one seam provide a grip for holding and passing the ball. The size of the Football Field at NIU Huskie Stadium is comparable to one acre of farmland. In DeKalb County, there are over 370,000 acres of farmland, or football fields.

You can watch a video of the Huskies Football experiencing our family farm.  

Lynn Martz
Maple Park, Ill.