meet your neighbors
Growing for the Next Generation
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By Julie Turner-Crawford
Greg and Kinsey Bradford started their farm with laying hens, but now are a multi-species operation Bradford Valley Farms began when Greg and Kinsey Bradford wanted to settle down and raise their family, but Kinsey got the ball rolling on the farming operation. “Kinsey got into the health side of food, so we looked up some information on Joel Salatin and got about 25 or 50 chicks our first time, seven or eight years ago, and just started,” Greg said. Greg grew up on a farm and worked for nearby dairy farms as a teen, but Kinsey had no farming background when they began their Damascus, Ark., operation. “I grew up in the middle of the city,” Kinsey said. “I grew up in Oregon, and just thinking about marrying a country boy and raising three girls on a farm was the last thing I ever thought I would be doing, but it fits us perfectly. We’re blessed to be able to do this. Greg and Kinsey Bradford are working to build and improve their fam“She has long surpassed me,” Greg said of Kinsey’s farming experience today. ily farm for the next generation, their daughters Tucker, Ellis Mae and Bradford Valley Farms is about 150 acres in total and is a pasture-based, multi-speOllie. cies operation that markets its products directly to consumers through on-farm sales, and it all started with laying hens. They had about 600 layers at one time, but they now manage about 200 layers, including some belonging to Greg’s father, and In anticipation of expansion, they doubled their herd. provide eggs to a few local restaurants and stores. They have utilized IAS Browns “It’s a long process,” Greg said. “We want to have a couple of calves every three in their laying flock the last couple of years. months because you have to be consistent and have beef available.” “We like them, but they are not as hardy as we would like them to be,” Kinsey Beef not sold as a half or whole is sold through individual cuts. explained. “We would like to get to where we run a full flock for two years. That Animals for the beef program are typically processed at about 900 pounds. No would be ideal for us because we have small children and work off the farm. They heifers are retained at this time because of the time required to put a heifer into a have been great for us for production.” breeding program. Thus, any additional females are purchased. While the laying operation is year-round, broilers produced at Bradford Valley In addition to pasture and forages, cattle receive salt, kelp and a basic mineral. Farms are seasonal. Broilers, eggs and beef are the biggest sellers for Bradford Valley Farm, but the “We do boilers when the grass is green,” Kinsey said. “We have about 1,000 chicks in family also offers grass-finished lamb and pastured pork. the brooder now. For the last three years, we have raised between 2,500 and 5,000; it “I grew up with pigs,” Greg said. “Right now, we have six sows and a boar. We have depends on our market. We can scale down as we see fit and when we want to. We have about 30 or 40 meat pigs a year, and then we sell piglets. We have a lot of people who will been successful with it, and it is amazing how much more popular this has become in come and get pigs to raise themselves; then, we have a little niche market with a group the last couple of years. We love having people out to the farm and show them where out of Little Rock that does a lot of barbecuing. They like them at about 100 pounds.” their food comes from.” Sows at the farm are Tamworth and are bred by a Berkshire boar. Broiler chicks are Cornish-cross, Cobb500 and/or Ross 308 purchased from “They are both good pasture pigs; they will eat grass, nuts and seeds,” Greg said. Keith-Smith. “The Tamworth do well on pasture and the Berkshire are just great, long pigs. They “They all grow well on pasture,” Kinsey said. “We have the capacity for 1,000 go good together and make great pigs.” birds in our hoop houses, and we time it to where we will have 1,000 more coming Meat pigs are raised to about 300 pounds at about 8 to 9 months. Pigs receive freeout of the brooder when we process those from the houses.” choice pellet and are rotated as often as possible to new pasture. While they are pasture-based, poultry at Bradford Valley Farm does receive spe“Demand is good, and we try to have pigs ready throughout the year,” Greg said. cialty-formulated, non-GMO rations from Powell Feed. Feed is offered free choice, “We like to have a big group ready in November because that’s what our communi24 hours a day. ty is used to from tradition. Kinsey has done an out-standing job marketing them, “We also have a grit, which is practically a rock, for their gizzards,” getting our bacon out in stores and things like that.” Kinsey said. The distribution of Bradford Valley Farms pork varies according to Farm-raised, grass-fed beef is another portion of the farm’s enterprise. Damascus, Ark. availability. The family currently has commercial Angus cattle and began beef about Lambs came to the farm when the Bradford children – Tucker (10), Ellis two years ago. Mae (6) and Ollie (3) – began showing. “We mainly sell halves to individuals,” Greg said. “There are a lot of “They are really good for our daughters, and they can handle them,” people looking for grass-fed now. This year, we had 25 people wanting Kinsey said. “We had goats, and that just wasn’t for us.” halves and could not even tap into that because we aren’t to that point.” The Bradfords obtain the majority of their lambs as orphans from Heifer
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Ozarks Farm & Neighbor • www.ozarksfn.com
MARCH 28, 2022
