Raised in Weld 2012

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September 2012

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September 14, 2012

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What’s Inside ■ SHEEP .......................................... 4 ■ BEEF .............................................6 ■ DAIRY........................................... 7 ■ LIVESTOCK FEED .................... 8-9 ■ SUGAR BEETS ......................... 10 ■ VEGETABLES ............................ 11 ■ WHEAT, MILLET, BARLEY........ 12 ■ BEANS ...................................... 13 ■ ORGANIC .................................. 14 ■ AGRITOURISM .......................... 15 All stories by ERIC BROWN ebrown@greeleytribune.com

Raised in Weld

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September 14, 2012

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6 | Raised in Weld

September 14, 2012

Weld County rich in beef heritage O

ne doesn’t have to search far to understand the significant role beef has played in shaping Greeley’s and Weld County’s heritage and present-day culture and economy, with the impact of the local industry’s success stretching well beyond the cowboys out in the local pastures.

The evidence is out in the open.

Greeley is a community dotted with structures that bear the names of families who shaped the beef industry — not only locally, but nationally and globally — and whose fortunes trickled down to benefit their hometown.

Medical facilities, schools, libraries, concert halls, post offices and buildings at the university’s campus all have been erected in honor of the Monforts, Farrs and others — producers who abandoned traditional production and feeding methods and revolutionized technology in the beef-cattle industry, international exporting practices and other aspects of the business to make operations more profitable and efficient, and to help make food more affordable for consumers.

Greeley’s beef heritage dates back to before the city was incorporated and even before the area was established as “Union Colony,” as huge areas of grazing land, hay meadows and ideal climate for livestock gave reason for cowboys to bring their cattle to the area.

The local beef industry exploded after World War II, when innovative Greeley producers recognized that thousands of U.S. soldiers who had survived overseas on mutton and other meats would return home desiring another source of protein.

The current concept of feedlots in the West began with two

» Where’s the beef?

According to the most recent Census of Agriculture, which was released in 2007, Weld County ranked No. 2 in the nation in the value of cattle and calves and No. 3 in the value of all livestock, poultry and their products.

Weld icons — W.D. Farr and Warren Monfort, who first fed sheep in pens because the sheep coming in off pasture in the fall reduced the price. By feeding them, they could avoid fall price drops and have product to sell year-round.

Monfort started what is now JBS Five Rivers by feeding 18 head of cattle in the early 1930s on his farm north of Greeley.

Monfort’s other innovations include bringing the packinghouse to the feedlot and the Greeley beef-packing plant now operated

by JBS USA. That plant began operations in May 1960, under the direction of Kenny Monfort, who pioneered the concept of boxed beef — slicing various cuts of beef that would fit in a box that could then be shipped to wholesale and retail outlets. Previously, cattle carcasses had been shipped by truck to those operations, which then processed them into specific cuts of beef.

Local cattlemen have served in national and international capacities under various U.S. presidents, have been inducted into numerous state and national hall of fames, garnered national and international cattleman accolades and have earned such prestigious titles as “Citizen of the West.”

The Greeley area’s plethora of beef cattle has also provided a platform for research in the industry. Many of the studies performed by the likes of Temple Grandin “a world-renowned Col-

JOSHUA POLSON/jpolson@greeleytribune.com

» Equine and eggs In addition to dairy and beef cattle and sheep, Weld is also a leader in the state for numbers of equine animals — horses, donkey and mules.

According to the 2007 agriculture census, there were more than 10,000 horses in Weld County and combined with ponies, mules, donkeys and burros, while there was a value of more than $5 million in “other animals and animal products,” which ranked the county No. 1 in the state.

The county is also home to three egg operations that produce nearly 2 million eggs per day, the largest being Morning Fresh Farms near Platteville. A family-owned operation since 1978, Morning Fresh Farms produces 700,000 eggs per day, year-round.

orado State University professor known for designing humanehandling and auditing systems that have improved farm-animal welfare worldwide” have been done locally.

And today — with some of the world’s largest cattle feeders and processors still operating locally, employing thousands of people — Greeley still stands as an international center of the industry,

and beef still plays a significant role in shaping the community’s identity.

There are the economic figures and lofty national rankings to back such claims.

According to the most recent U.S. Census of Agriculture, Weld County’s market value of production was $1.54 billion — placing Weld at No. 8 in the nation — with more than 80 percent of

that ($1.26 billion) coming from livestock operations.

The county remains home to two of the largest cattle feeding operations in the nation, operated by JBS USA Five Rivers Cattle Feeding. That cattle-feeding operation, which has four if its 11 feedlots in Colorado, has a onetime feeding capacity of close to 1 million head. In Weld County, it operates feedlots near Gilcrest and Kersey, as well as one in Yuma and another near Lamar in southern Colorado.

According to the Colorado office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, at the start of this year there were a state-leading 565,000 cattle and calves in Weld County, 49,500 beef cows on ranches — all increases from the previous year.

Raised in Weld | 7

September 14, 2012

FOR THE TRIBUNE

No signs of slowing for Weld’s dairy industry

T

he dairy industry has long been big business in Weld County — and it’s about to get a whole lot bigger.

Already about 70,000 of the state’s 131,000 dairy cows are located in Weld County, according to the Colorado office for the National Agricultural Statistics Service, and there are about 50,000 or more that will be needed in the region to meet the milk demands of the new Leprino Foods’ cheese plant in Greeley.

The plant began operations last fall and expects to ramp up production next year.

Dairy industry experts — including Wade Meek with Dairy Farmers of America — say the area’s producers are on track to meet the milk needs of the processing plant, as four new large Weld dairies area already in the works.

In 2010, Colorado’s total value of receipts for dairy products in the state was at $457 million, and there were 74 dairies in Weld County, or

more than half the farms in the state.

Numbers for 2011 weren’t available, but in 2010, Weld County dairy operations produced 134 pounds of milk each month — 1.6 billion pounds for the year — and produced 57 percent of the milk in Colorado, and stood as the 17th largest dairy county in the U.S. in cow numbers — 69,783.

Colorado now ranks third in milk per cow, averaging slightly more than 23,000 pounds of milk per cow.

The average herd size in the state, nearly 1,000 herd, is ranked fifth in the nation.

Milk produced per capita in Colorado is 565 pounds. In comparison, the milk production per capita in California is 1,069 pounds and the average milk produced per capita in the U.S. is 618.

Total production per cow in the U.S. for 2009 was 20,576 pounds, the third time pro-

duction had exceeded 20,000 pounds per cow. That came from 54,942 dairy farms in the U.S., which was down from 57,127 farms in 2008. That reduction was the results of a herd downsizing because of the poor U.S. economy and lower prices for milk.

Local dairy operations are a major consumer of corn and silage, which along with a large number of cattle-feeding operations in the county, results in Weld leading the state in production of that crop. A dairy cow will consume about 7.3 tons of silage per year and on the average size of 946 head per dairy, slightly more than 6,900 tons of silage consumed.

Weld farmers average about 25 tons per acre of silage corn and produced more than 1 million tons per year of the state’s 2.6 million tons, according to the Colorado office for the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

The state’s dairy farmers also fund their

own promotional and marketing organization, much like the state’s cattle producers, with a volunteer check-off program, where 15 cents on every 100 pounds of milk is taken from a producer’s milk check. The Western Dairy Association, based in Thornton, runs the programs, working in areas of child nutrition and fitness, customizing nutrition activities and events. The association also collaborates with the national check-off team in working with processors in flavored milk reformulation, to encourage new packaging that consumers demand, develop new products such as smoothies available at Starbucks and the specialty coffee line at McDonald’s. It also helps retailers develop more appealing dairy aisle space, perform tests on new flavors, communicate with processors about new cheese innovation and other similar efforts, and with pizza chains, such as Domino’s.

8 | Raised in Weld

September 14, 2012

CORN AND HAY

Large livestock operations keep local g W

ith so many animals in Weld County, increased feed production has been required of Weld County farmers, who rank as some of the top corn and hay growers in the state.

Although, local producers, like farmers in many other parts of the U.S., have taken a hit in production due to the widespread drought on 2012.

Weld County’s massive production of livestock feed, as well as other crops, is inseparably bound to the development of irrigation. In 1870, one of the first agriculture colonies in Colorado was established where the Poudre River meets the South Platte River.

Originally it was known as the Union Colony, but was later renamed Greeley.

The colonists pooled their resources and moved quickly to build irrigation ditches. Ten miles of ditch were completed the first summer, with 27 more miles the following year irrigating 25,000 acres.

Today, there are nearly 1,000 miles of irrigation canals irrigating close to 400,000 acres.

Corn for grain, historically, has taken more than 100,000 acres of farmland in Weld on an annual basis, while corn for silage ranges from 40,000 to 45,000 acres each year — although the Colorado office for the National Agricultural Statistics Service didn’t have a by-county breakdown of state’s corn for grain and corn for silage production in its 2011 report.

In 2011, Weld County’s total corn acres and its production ranked third in the state, trailing only Yuma and Kit Carson counties, which were first and second, respectively. Yuma County has led the nation in corn for grain production in recent years.

Taken together, corn is among one of the top three crops grown in the county in terms of acreage. In 2007, corn moved up to the leading crops

JOSHUA POLSON/

produced in Colorado in terms of total value and production.

The easiest way to distinguish the two types of corn is by its stalk height and size of the ear. Corn for silage grows to be 10 feet or taller, but has a very thin ear; corn for grain has a

shorter stalk and fuller ear.

Corn for silage is cut at the ground by a harvester, who chops the stalk and ear before throwing the mixture into waiting trucks. There is a small window in late summer or early fall that the crop can be harvested with the

right moisture content. It is then taken to pits where it can be stored and used as part of the feed ration for beef cattle, dairy and other livestock operations.

Corn for grain is harvested with combines and the kernels collected by the machine are then flaked and used

in livestock feed years for the pro be mixed with ga uct from ethanol back to livestock erations to be us ration.

Raised in Weld | 9

September 14, 2012

growers busy

/jpolson@greeleytribune.com

rations, and in recent oduction of ethanol to asoline. The by-prodl plants, however, goes feeding and dairy opsed as part of the feed

Both are planted from mid-April to early June, depending on weather conditions and the harvest of corn for grain usually starts in the later part of August and is complete by early October.

Because of the large number of beef cattle, dairies and sheep-feeding operations in Weld, the county continues to be a corn-deficient area. As such, it imports corn from other counties in Colorado, as well as other states.

Like corn, hay, too, is an important aspect of agriculture in Weld, and, in most years, is the No. 1 crop in the county in terms of acreage — although there are years when it is surpassed by corn and wheat.

According to the Colorado office of National Agriculture Statistics Service, Weld County harvested 99,000 acres of alfalfa in 2011, producing 507,000 tons, and 44,000 acres of other hay for 80,500 tons — which all together, ranked the county No. 1 in the state.

Alfalfa hay can be ground as a feed source or baled and stored to be added to a feed ration. The harvest of that crop can begin around the first week of June and can continue through the end of September to early October, but that depends on weather conditions and the condition of the crop.

The cutting of other hay crops begins in early July and is usually completed by the end of September. The yield of those crops are typically only a percentage of irrigated alfalfa, but wet years can produce a bumper crop. In most cases, that crop is baled and used as winterfeed for ranch cattle when pasture grass in dormant.

Hay is swathed and put in windrows in a field, allowed to dry, and then is baled and moved to storage. Some green alfalfa is chopped and used in the feed ration for both dairy and beef animals. Typically, the first cutting of alfalfa hay goes to dairy operations because of its high quality.

CROP RECORD HIGH AND LOWS » Records | COLO. FOR ACREAGE, YIELD AND PRODUCTION RECORD HIGH

YEAR

RECORD LOW

YEAR

RECORDS BEGAN

971,000 135 bushels 22.54 million

1945 2009 1945

4,000 15 bushels 104,000

1979/80 1925 1879

1879 1879 1879

CORN Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (bushels)

1.527 million 160 bushels 159 million

1933 1988 1999

23,000 6.6 bushels 400,000

1879 1934 1881

1879 1879 1879

CORN FOR SILAGE Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (tons)

299,000 24.5 tons 5.23 million

1972 2010 1972

30,000 2.5 tons 127,000

1928 1934 1925

1919 1919 1919

ALL DRY BEANS Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (pounds)

460,000 2,170 pounds 472.5 million

1943 2002 1990

5,000 174 pounds 29 million

1909 1932 1909

1909 1909 1909

1.68 million 3.26 tons 4.78 million

1923 1998 2001

1.17 million 1.16 tons 1.45 million

1910 1934 1934

1909 1909 1909

ONIONS Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (pounds)

17,800 50,000 pounds 614.1 million

1995 2004 1995

700 12,000 pounds 9.7 million

1918 934 1918

1918 1918 1918

ALL POTATOES Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (pounds)

136,000 4,000 pounds 3.25 billion

1922 2009 1996

6,000 3,330 pounds 21.6 million

1879/80 1889 1880

1879 1879 1879

242,000 29.5 tons 3.3 million

1930 2010 1930

2,500 9.3 tons 46,000

1985 1908/1934 1985

1905 1905 1905

3.52 million 45.5 bushels 139.3 million

1985 2010 1985

11,000 8.8 bushels 275,000

1869 1934 1869

1869 1869 1869

BARLEY Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (bushels)

ALL HAY Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (tons)

SUGAR BEETS Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (tons) ALL WHEAT Acres Harvested Yield Per Acre Production (bushels)

» COLORADO LIVESTOCK RECORD HIGHS AND LOWS CATTLE All Cattle Beef Cows Milk Cows Calf Crop Cattle on Feed

RECORD HIGH

YEAR

RECORD LOW

YEAR

RECORDS BEGAN

3.75 million head 1.12 million head 300,000 head 1.12 million head 1.2 million head

1973 1974 1934 1973 2001

47,000 head 406,000 head 2,000 head 482,000 head 87,000 head

1867 1927 1867 1927 1935

1867 1920 1867 1924 1928

HOGS All Hogs Breeding Hogs Market Hogs Pig Crop

910,000 head 210,000 head 705,000 head 2.9 million head

1999 1999 2005 2000

2,000 head 20,000 head 143,000 head 377,000 head

1866 1984 1965 1988

1866 1963 1963 1988

1930 1998 1942 1943

360,000 head 165,000 head 180,000 head 175,000 head

2004 2002 2004-05 2003

1920 1994 1920 1924

SHEEP AND LAMBS All 3.75 million head Market 335,000 head Breeding 1.9 million head Lamb Crop 1.375 million head

10 | Raised in Weld

September 14, 2012

SUGAR BEETS

A century later, crop is still significant to Weld County ag

S

ugar beets have been part of the agricultural scene in northern Colorado for more than 100 years — said to have bought and paid for more farms in the region than any other crop.

Despite seeing a statewide decrease in significance over the years, Weld County continues to be a solid producer of sugar beets, leading Colorado in total production by a long shot. In 2011, there were 11,000 acres of sugar beets harvested in Weld County, producing 338,000 tons. Yuma County was second last year with 4,100 acres producing about 120,000 tons, followed by Logan County with 3,600 acres harvested and 93,000 tons produced, and then Larimer County with 2,900 acres and 75,500 tons, according to the Colorado office of National Agriculture Statistics Service.

Statewide, total production numbers were up a little bit in 2011 compared with the previous year. Last year, there were 29,400 acres harvested that produced 829,000 tons, while in 2010, there were 28,900 acres harvested that produced 963,000 tons.

The 2009 sugar beet total production numbers — about 35,000 acres harvested and 963,000 tons produced — represented the best in the state in more than a decade.

While total production was down in 2010, yields that year were at an all-time for Colorado farmers, as they got 29.5 tons per acre, topping the previous mark of 27.5 tons in 2009.

Sugar beets were introduced to northern Colorado in the early 1900s, and sugar beet processing plants dotted the landscape from Longmont to Fort Collins, from Brighton to Eaton and east to Fort Morgan, Sterling and Ovid.

Now, however, only the Fort Morgan processing plant remains and it processes the majority of the region’s beets. The Greeley plant was razed to make room for Leprino Foods’ new cheese processing plant, which begins operations in November.

Greeley and Eaton opened the first two sugar factories in Weld in 1902, and others followed in Windsor (1904), Fort Lupton (1920) and Johnstown (1926). At one time, there were 13 factories operating in northern Colorado.

According to the NASS, the record-high acreage for sugar beets was 242,000 in 1930 and the record low was 2,500 in 1985. The low came during a time when the former Great Western Sugar Co. was in bankruptcy. It was purchased out of bankruptcy by Tate & Lyle — a British company that renamed it the Western Sugar Co. In the late 1990s, Tate & Lyle began looking for a buyer because of the volatile sugar market in the U.S. and in the April 2002, the sale to the Western Sugar Cooperative, a group of more than 1,000 sugar beet growers in Colorado, Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana, was finalized. The cooperative, which is based in Denver, contracts beets to growers in the four states.

» How Weld ranks in Colorado Total value of products sold Value of crops, including nursery and greenhouses Value of livestock, poultry and their products Grains, oilseeds, dry beans and dry peas Vegetables, melons, potatoes and sweet potatoes Nursery, greenhouse, floriculture and sold Cut Christmas trees, short rotation woody crops Other crops and hay Poultry and eggs Cattle and calves Milk and other products from cows Hogs and pigs Sheep, goats and their products Horses, ponies, mules, burros and donkeys Aguaculture Other animals and animal products

1 1 1 3 3 2 5 1 1 1 1 10 1 2 8 1

» Top Crop Items Forage crops (hay, grass, silage, greenchop) Wheat for grain, all Corn for grain Corn for silage Vegetables harvested for sale

1 11 4 1 4

» Top Livestock Inventory Layers Turkeys Cattle and calves Pullet for laying flock replacement Sheep and lambs

1 1 1 1 1

Source: 2007 U.S. Census of Agriculture

Sugar beets are usually the first crop planted and the last harvested. They are planted as early as late March to early April, depending on soil temperatures. Harvest usually starts in late September with enough beets going to processing facilities to get them up and going. That harvest can continue into November, but it will be February or March of the following year before all of them are processed into sugar.

The Western Sugar Cooperative, according to its website, produces retail lines of sugar products under the label, as well as several private labels lines. Products include fine granulated sugar in sizes from 1/10-ounce packets to 25-pound bags, as well as powdered sugar, and light and dark brown sugar.

The cooperative also ships sugar to industrial customers. For that market, Western packages sugar into bags ranging in size from a pound to 100 pounds, and packages super sacks up to 2,300 pounds. The sugar is transported by truck and rail, and sugar produced by Western can be found in all 50 states.

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Weld has veggies covered, from asparagus to zucchini

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W

hen it comes to vegetables, Weld farmers nearly grow it all — from asparagus to zucchini to carrots.

In 2010, according to the Colorado office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, the state’s vegetable growers produced more than 571 million pounds of the four fresh market crops — onions, sweet corn, cabbage and cantaloupe.

In 2010, the state produced about 575.5 million pounds for a total value of about $82.5 million.

While the acreage of vegetables took a downturn at the beginning of the century due to a lack of irrigation water, some of that has returned in recent years.

In 2011, the state ranked in the top 10 in the nation for the production of the four fresh market crops, led by cabbage, ranked No. 4, followed by cantaloupe and onions at No. 6, with sweet corn at No. 7.

In addition, the state ranks high in potatoes — fifth in the nation — but the majority of that crop is now produced in the San Luis Valley of southern Colorado.

Traditionally, about 60 percent of the storage onion crop is grown in northern Colorado, which includes Weld, Adams, Larimer and Morgan counties. Onion acreage in the state was about 7,600 in 2011.

In the past, there were two types of onions grown in Weld — a crop transplanted from starts in southern climate such as Texas or Arizona, which is sent to market right after

harvest, and a second that is produced from seed and can be stored to be marketed over the fall and winter months. Transplant onions, however, represent only a small percentage of those grown in northern Colorado — probably 5 percent or less.

The Western Slope once had upwards of 3,000 acre of onions, but that has declined to between 500 and 1,000, as growers in that part of the state deal with early frosts, which onions can’t stand, and transportation problems.

Weld is also home to Hungenberg Produce, the only commercial carrot producer in the state, with about 1,000 acres. The company also grows cabbage and onion sets, which are shipped to markets in the state and nation.

There were 2,800 acres of cabbage harvested in the state in 2011, according to the ag statistics office, which produced almost 122.8 million pounds that had a value of $17.5 million.

The area’s largest commercial producer of sweet corn is Sakata Farms of Brighton, which grows the crop in Adams and Weld counties.

Sweet corn, also produced on the Western Slope, saw 7,400 acres harvested in 2011, producing more than 133.2 million pounds with a value of $22.5 million.

Martin Produce of Greeley and Strohauer Farms of LaSalle market potatoes, with Strohauer offering a wide range of fingerling potatoes in addition to those sent to supermarkets.

Both operations also grow and market onions, while Strohauer has a line of broiler onions, pearl onions, shallots and cipollini onions.

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12 | Raised in Weld

September 14, 2012

JIM RYDBOM/jrydbom@greeleytribune.com

WHEAT, MILLET, BARLEY

Small grains a staple of Weld agriculture W eld County has helped Colorado stand as a major player in smallgrain production.

Winter wheat, for example, covered about 134,000 acres in Weld County in 2011, a year in which the state produced 81.8 million bushels, ranking fourth in the U.S. Back in 2009, the state produced about 98 million bushels of winter wheat, ranking behind only Kansas. Although Colorado produced 105 million bushels in 2010, the state dropped to No. 5 in the national rankings (crop failures in Texas and Oklahoma had helped move Colorado up in the national standings two years ago).

On an average during the past 10 years, Colorado has been ranked eighth in U.S. winter wheat production.

Like 2011, wheat producers in 2012 battled dry conditions through much of the growing season, but, in many cases, still managed to get about average yields — between 30 to 40 bushels per acre.

Weld County ranked sixth in the state last year in total production of winter wheat, producing 5.2 million bushels. Washington

County led the way for Colorado, harvesting 273,000 acres of winter wheat and producing 11.8 million bushels.

The estimated value of Colorado’s winter wheat crop in 2011 was $522 million, with spring wheat adding another $23 million for a grand total of about $545 million in overall wheat value.

Winter wheat is grown on dryland regions of the country, ranging from one end of the nation to the other. It’s planted in early fall and emerges, then goes into dormancy over the winter months. In the spring, once the soil temperatures warm, the crop begins growing, depending on rain for moisture, and traditionally, in In Weld County, harvest starts around July 4 — although this year, it began in late June, with record maturing the crop early — and can continue into early August.

While winter wheat is the major smallgrain crop in Weld, others are dotted across the landscape, including millet — the only crop in which Colorado ranks first in the nation for production.

Colorado’s millet farmers produce about half of the country’s supply.

Millet has traditionally been used in the U.S. mainly for birdseed and some baking and beer brewing, but globally, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture, it sustains one-third of the world’s population.

Exports of millet have been on the rise in recent years, but the gluten-free crop is also finding more uses domestically, as glutenfree products are a rising trend. Well-known companies such as Betty Crocker and General Mills are using millet to offer products to those wanting to eliminate gluten from their diets, and for people with celiac disease who otherwise can’t tolerate the proteins in wheat, rye and barley.

According to the Colorado office of the National Agricultural Statistics Service, in 2011, the state’s farmers harvested 230,000 acres of millet, producing 6.2 million bushels. Just two years earlier, there were only 150,000 acres harvested.

The Colorado northeastern plains is the region where most of the state’s millet is grown.

Sunflowers have seen an overall increase in popularity in the past few years. Like millet and wheat, it’s a small-grain crop that needs

little water and is a good rotation crop used by wheat farmers as the deep-root system aerates the soil while also bringing those dryland farmers another source of income.

Sunflowers are grown for their oil and for birdseed or other similar uses. In Weld, most of the crop is the oil variety.

Much of the county’s barley crop is grown under contact and is used for the brewing of beer at the Miller-Coors plant in Golden. In 2011, Weld farmers harvested 7,200 of barley — down from the 7,600 acres harvested in 2010 — and produced 750,000 bushels.

Weld’s 2011 barley numbers again ranked the county sixth in the state.

Barley grown under contract must meet strict requirements by the brewing company.

If it doesn’t, it is used as animal feed for a considerably lower price than that of brewing barley.

In 2011, the agricultural statistics office reported that the state’s millet crop had a value at $36.6 more than (double what it was in 2009), barley was at $41.2 million (up from 2010), sunflowers were at $40.5 million (nearly double what it was in 2009).

Raised in Weld | 13

September 14, 2012

Beans still sprouting despite recent decline

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espite reduced acreage recently, Weld County has long played a part in Colorado ranking in the top 10 nationally for dry beans.

A resurgence in dry bean production in the state lasted into 2010, but dropped off dramatically in 2011, a decline attributed to a variety of factors, including increasing prices for other crops while dry bean prices decreased, according to Larry Lande with Northern Feed and Bean in Lucerne.

The Colorado office of the National Agriculture Statistics Service reported that Colorado farmers harvested just 37,000 acres of dry beans in 2011, after harvesting in 66,000 acres for a total production of 125.4 mil-

» Going green Weld County also includes a large “green” industry — encompassing nurseries, greenhouse operations and sod farms. According to the Colorado Nursery and Greenhouse Association, there are more than three million square feet of greenhouses in Colorado. However, not all greenhouse operations are a member of the association, so the actual number is likely higher.

According to the 2007 Census of Agriculture, the value of sales in nursery, greenhouses, floriculture and sod in Weld was $73.8 million, ranking its second in the state and 45th in the nation. The county has more than 20 percent of all the greenhouses in the state with about 25 percent of the sales.

lion pounds in 2010, whih had been an improvement from the 53,000 acres harvested in 2009 and the 84.8 million pounds produced.

But despite the sharp decline in acreage, Colorado still ranked No. 9 in the nation for its dry bean production — which primarily consists of pinto beans,

but includes light red kidney, great northern, black or turtle beans, Anasazi, garbanzo, navy, pink, yellow and small red beans — and the value of the crop in the state stood at $26 million.

Lande said dry bean acreage remains low this year, but has increased some.

Weld County’s dry bean pro-

duction numbers weren’t included in the 2011 and 2010 NASS report, but in 2009, there were 6,400 acres of beans harvested in Weld, ranking it fourth in the state behind Yuma, Dolores and Montezuma counties.

Much like the decrease during the last two years, a decline in dry beans production also took place in the early 2000s, and was attributed to a variety of factors, including the drought years that took place then.

Before that decline, upwards of 20,000 acres of the crop had been grown in Weld.

The majority of beans produced in Weld are exported to Mexico. The pinto bean is a staple of Mexican cooking and is widely available dried and canned. Red

kidney beans are commonly used in making chili while the other beans are used in salads and a variety of other dishes.

Weld farmers usually plant their crop between May 20 and July 1, depending on weather conditions. Harvesting starts in late August and wraps up in September or early October.

Beans grow on vines, which at harvest are cut at the ground.

The vines are then put in windrows to dry before farmers move through the fields with a combine. The combine, with a head designed specifically for beans, gathers the vines and shakes the beans out of their pods into a hopper. The combine then ejects the remaining debris back on the field.

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14 | Raised in Weld

September 14, 2012

JOSHUA POLSON/jpolson@greeleytribune.com

Future bright for growing organic operations

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bout two decades ago, 2-year-old Bryce Hediger scampered out into a wheat field — one that had been recently sprayed with chemicals — and sounded the alarm to his parents that a change in the family farm’s operations was needed.

It was that day — because of the potential danger to their child — they wanted to do away with herbicides, insecticides and other chemicals, and explore going organic, a direction in which the family has continued ever since.

And because of what’s happened during the past 20 years — double-digit growth annually in the U.S. organic industry, as more consumers have become increasingly conscious about how their food is produced — Bryce, now 23 years old, has returned to those same family fields near Nunn, looking to take Hediger Farms to another level in an industry where the sky is seemingly the limit.

The Hedigers today, like many producers across Weld County and the U.S., are doing their part to meet the growing demand for organic food, but a supply gap still exists, producers and industry experts agree.

Once just a niche market, large retailers — Walmart, Target, Safeway and others — are now continually expanding their organic selections.

Because of that demand, growth in organic production is needed, and Dawn Thilmany, a Colorado State University professor who has studied the state’s organic production for about 15 years, as well as Hediger, who recently graduated from the University of Denver, and other producers and experts believe Weld County in is a prime location to take advantage of the ongoing boom in the industry.

Already one of the top 10 counties in the nation in agriculture production, Weld County — whose annual value of agricultural products exceeds that of 14 individual states — is in close proximity to hot beds of organic-product demand, cities like Boulder and Denver.

Because of its high altitude, dry climate and cold winters, the region typically has less insects and crops diseases compared with other agricultural sections of the U.S., meaning farmers here are a little less dependant on certain chemicals to begin with, according to Thilmany.

And northern Colorado’s typically dry cli-

mate provides another incentive for farmers locally, Thilmany said. Organic production requires more water, but gross revenue per acre-foot-of water is higher in organic production than in conventional production in most years — although that can vary, depending on where commodity prices are for conventionally grown crops.

Because of its potential, organic operations in Weld have grown in recent years, and now includes milk producers — such as Aurora Organic Dairy operating at four locations — and vegetable growers — Monroe Organic Farms near Kersey — as well as small-grain farmers like the Hedigers, and ranchers who don’t use growth hormones and feed their animals on natural grass and crops grown organically.

“I’d agree that we’re in an ideal location for organic growth,” said Harry Strohauer, a LaSalle-area farmer who started growing potatoes organically on a small portion of his land six years ago and now has about 10 percent of his land in organic production, doing business with giants in the organic industry, such as Whole Foods Market stores.

Strohauer said he’ll continue to expand his

organic operations as the market calls for it — although, as he noted, transitioning acres into organic production is no simple task.

“It’s kind of like starting all over again. It can be very tough,” Strohauer noted.

When producers do away with chemicals such as herbicides and insecticides, they must find other farming techniques to combat weeds and pests in their fields, as well as provide nutrients to the soil. Those organic techniques typically cost more and require more labor.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, an average of $171,978 was spent on organic farms in 2008, while about $109,359 was spent on conventional farms.

It can also be difficult to get high yields with organic production.

“We certainly don’t at all have anything against conventional producers,” Hediger said. “The chemicals they use are well-regulated ... and we know those producers are needed to supply enough food to feed a world that’s growing.

“Organic farming can be difficult, but it’s been a great fit for us, and it looks to be a good business to be in.”

Raised in Weld | 15

September 14, 2012

Agritourism big business in Weld

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tanding as one of the top 10 agriculture counties in the nation, it’s no surprise that agritourism is establishing a foothold in Weld County.

Agritourism, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture, covers a wide variety of recreational, educational and other leisure activities and services related to agriculture that take place on or off the farm or ranch, and that connect consumers with the heritage, natural resources or culinary experience they value.

There are three general classifications of the agritourism activities — on-farm/ranch, food-based and heritage activities.

According to the latest Census of Agriculture, released in 2007, there were 679 Colorado farms that offered agritourism and recreational services, totaling almost $33 million in farm income. Those numbers have likely increased during the past five years. The next ag census will be released in 2013, based on 2012 numbers.

In 2006, according to the Colorado Department of Agriculture and Colorado State University economists, Colorado agritourism locations hosted 13 million visitors, which resulted in a $2.2 billion overall

economic impact.

Dawn Thilmany, a Colorado State University professor who examines agritourism, said updated statistics on that part of the agriculture industry are limited, but added there’s no doubt agritourism across the state and nation has been growing steadily during the past 15 years — especially when also factoring farmers markets and roadside stands.

Enticing many producers to start such operations, she added, is the diversity it brings to their revenue — adding more certainty to their annual incomes in an industry that can bring many financial ups and downs.

When hundreds or tens of thousands of people pay to visit their fields to get lost in a maze of corn, or wander through a pumpkin patch, or pick their own fresh produce, or tour historic equipment museums, those farms get a big boost.

In many cases, agritourism also requires less production costs compared to growing crops for food, and, therefore, can be more profitable per acre, Thilmany explained.

Some producers also see agritourism as a way to educate a general public that has become detached from the farms where their food is grown, Thilmany added.

» Weld agritourism locations include: Anderson Farms 6728 Weld County Road 3.25 Erie (303) 828-5210 www.andersonfarms.com Cozy Cow Dairy 28607 County Road 17 Windsor (970) 686-6960 cozycows.com Fritzler Family Corn Maze 15630 Highway 256 LaSalle (970) 737-2129 www.FritzlerMaze.com Mazzotti’s Pumpkin Patch 24120 Weld County Road 8 Hudson (303) 536-4089, (303) 710-2410 www.mazzottifarms.com Miller Farms 9040 Highway 66 Platteville

(970) 785-6133 www.millerfarms.net Monroe Organic Farms, LLC 25525 Weld County Road 48 Kersey (970) 284-7941 www.monroefarm.com Tigges Farm 12404 Weld County Road 64.5 Greeley (970) 686-7225, (970) 371-2076 notillkathy@comcast.net Wild West Maze 6876 Weld County 47 Hudson (303) 536-9200 www.wildwestmaze.com Windsor Dairy 6427 Weld County Road 68.5 Windsor (970) 674-0571 www.windsordairy.com Source: www.colorado agritourism.com

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September 14, 2012

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