Master Pork Producers get boost from daughters

   It’s possible Chad and Renee Adams would have been selected as Jones County Master Pork Producers for 2023 even without the help of their grown daughters, Courtney and Breanna.

   Either way, the parents are grateful for the daughters’ help.

   “Chad and I were working 14-hour days, year-round,” Renee Adams said. “You work every holiday, every weekend. I’m so grateful for them.”

   “They’re a huge asset,” added Chad.

   The family got word about the award from the Jones County Pork Producers in early October. They represent one of perhaps a half-dozen farms across Iowa who will receive the award.

   The Iowa Pork Producers Association will come to the farm to shoot video and do interviews. The family will then be honored during the annual Iowa Pork Congress in January.

   “It’s a big surprise,” Chad said. “We’ve seen other people receive the award, and they are good peers and good leaders.

   “We just do our daily job, and take pride in our work, so it’s nice to be recognized. We didn’t do anything special; we just do things the right way, we feel.”

   Their operation markets 23,000 to 24,000 pigs a year, so it was no wonder that Chad and Renee needed additional help. So Courtney and Breanna, both graduates of Iowa State University and both majors in ag studies, were welcome additions.

   “We always knew Breanna wanted to come back when she graduated college,” Renee said. “When she came back it lightened our load, but there was still plenty to do.

   “Then Courtney mentioned, ‘Hey, I’m possibly thinking about changing jobs.’ And we’re like, ‘Hmm. We’re still overwhelmed. So it worked out really well. They have caught on super quick.”

   Chad added:” It has definitely helped lessen the work load. Things are getting done better, too. That’s the big thing.”

   Breanna, 23, came back in May 2021. A big factor in her return was her husband, Quinton Fellinger.

   “I knew I wanted to move back home,” Breanna said. “And Quinton was back here. I knew I wanted to do something farm-related, I just didn’t know what. I talked with Mom and Dad, and their workload was piled high.”

   Courtney, 26, hopes to one day run the farm.

   “I was 2½ hours away, so when this came up, I knew I could be a lot closer to the family, and would be coming back to my hometown. I could get a head start on (taking over) and get a feel for it.”

   Rather than assign specific people for specific jobs on the farm, the Adams family shares and rotates duties.

   “Basically everybody can do whatever needs to be done,” Chad said.

   “That’s important to us, that everybody has a hand in everything, just in case something were to happen with somebody,” Renee added. “And, we like the different ideas coming from everybody.”

   Courtney agreed: “We do anything and everything. Everyone’s familiar with every job.”

   The parents said Courtney and Breanna add elements to the operation as well.

   “The girls see things differently than Renee and I do,” Chad said. “You walk into a building or into a barn, and everybody picks up on different things. So it’s nice to have another set of eyes on the pigs, or feeders, or inlets.”

   “We have our set barns, of how we chore,” Breanna said, “but then we always try to rotate, or just have someone go in, and see if they see something different that we’re missing.”

   Renee said: “Since the girls have come back, I’ve stepped away from the barn a lot more. I only go there as needed now, so that way I can concentrate more on the books.”

   Having younger hands on the farm is helpful in terms of technology, as well.

   “The technology has made it a lot easier for us,” Courtney said.

   “Things in the ag industry change so quickly,” Renee said. “If you continue to do things the way you’ve always done it, at some point you’re not going to be able to do it anymore. You’re going to fall behind.”

   The four of them operate out of an office that is connected to their own feed mill, and is centrally-located on the farm. It was built in 2018.

   “In the office, we can bounce ideas off each other,” Chad said.

   Renee added: “It’s a central hub where we can meet and communicate. The more we communicate, the better things roll.”

   The feed mill, mostly operated by Courtney and Breanna, has been an asset as well.

   “It’s better biosecurity, because it’s just our feed truck going to our barns,” Renee said. “That’s huge.”

   The family also gets help from salesman Ben Brown of Rochester, Minn.; and custom feeders who share chores, costs and space. The Adams farm is also the first wean-to-finish research barn for Devenish Nutrition of Fairmont, Minn.

   Chad and Renee, 51 and 49, respectively, have a third daughter and two sons. The boys are working in the cattle industry, Cole at Lubben White Oak Farms; Connor with Valley Road Farms, both near Monticello. Daughter Lindsey works at BioLife Plasma Center in Dubuque, and at the Delaware County Jail.

   On the Adams farm, Courtney and Breanna continue to help in any way they can, and say they enjoy it.

   “Every day, something’s different. That’s what I enjoy,” Breanna said.

   “It’s not always the same thing every day,” Courtney agreed.

   Chad said: “They also help out in the fall and the spring with crops and field work. It gives them variety; that way it’s not pigs all the time.”

   But for these Master Pork Producers, the pigs are top priorities.

   “If the pigs are happy, we’re happy,” Courtney said.