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Thankful for Seasons

Here I sit looking out the window, saying thanks for changing seasons.  I realize that I am the minority here, but there is something magical about how year after year, we see the same changes.  In the early spring, we see small sprigs of green tulip leaves poking through the snow, letting us know that Spring is on it's way.  And now, I see the most vibrant red maple leaves, reminding me to bundle up because Winter is nearly here. 

Also exciting, are the holidays that come along with the changing of the seasons.  We get Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas back to back, which although the weather is getting colder, our hearts seem to get warmer.  It's my favorite time of the year.  I love the feeling you get from giving a great gift, helping those in need, and simply by spending time with your family. 

Christmas tunes are echoing through our halls, and although I was brought up to wait until Thanksgiving weekend to put up the tree, I can't help wanting to sneak down to the basement while everyone is sleeping and put it up.  I love seeing the kids stockings hung in anticipation of being weighed down with fun toys and snacks, and the growing collection of Christmas stories we put under our tree until they are covered up by presents.  I love getting to play the big man in red, too.  Listening to the kids secrets to each other about what they hope Santa will bring, and making those wishes come true. 

So, yes, I love the changing of the seasons.  There is truly nothing more exciting than quietly falling snowflakes creating our White Christmas. 

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Thankful for Time

As I was cleaning in my silent home, I began to ponder how fast it seems that life is happening.  I know that everyone warned me that as soon as we had kids time would fly, but no one told me how exponentially quickly time would fly.  So, here is today's revelation:

I was born in Evanston, IL.  I remember my home on 5th Ave. in Des Plaines, IL.  That was a couple decades ago, but still.  I remember them, and still consider myself a city girl at heart.  But there I was today, wearing oversized army green coveralls, standing in a building full of crying piglets pondering how fast time flies.  15 1/2 years ago I met this farm boy.  I chuckled at the fact that he had grown up on a hog farm.  I chuckled because there was something intriguing and interesting about this farm boy that I didn't know I would ever find attractive.  Growing up I had always pictured a Parisian flat with my business suit clad husband rushing out the door to an important meeting.  But here I am 15 years later, standing in a new hog barn surrounded by 1200 animals, being grateful for God's plan. 

You see, this weekend, my kids are gone.  And, since it is November, John is also gone in a tractor somewhere.  This leaves me in an infrequently quiet house to ponder.  So here I sit, avoiding all the chores that need to be done, saying thanks for the most amazing blessings.  I have an amazing farmer husband, three beautiful and mostly well-behaved children, two dogs, some farm cats, and a great new business. 

So, Father Time, please continue to tick away the minutes, but allow me a few days in the midst of it all to sit in this occasionally quiet house and give thanks for my blessings.  And, as to the speed at which time seems to go by, allow me a clearer view at what is really important.  Allow me to enjoy each passing moment and store it away for another one of these quiet days.

Photos are up!

I am slowly entering the next century and getting photos posted to our facebook acct. What I really can't wait for is my phone renewal on nov. 1! Anyhow, we are finally catching up with the building project on the Hagenbuch Family Farms fb page. I have pictures as new as setting the trusses. If you live anywhere in the area, you will now have also noticed our choice of building color...a beautiful red hue. Also in the works is www.hagenbuchfamilyfarms.com. Stop! Don't go there yet. It isn't ready. But soon...very soon.

We are also trying to plan our Open House. We realize that we cannot accommodate everyone's schedules, but we are doing our best to make the timing good for everyone.

So, log on to our fb page, like us if you don't already, and leave us a comment on the pictures! If you tweet, follow me @jkhagenbuch.

Social Media

You can also follow us on many social media outlets.

Facebook:  Hagenbuch Family Farms
Twitter: jkhagenbuch
LinkedIn: Kati Hagenbuch

or you can always email us at HagenbuchFamilyFarms@gmail.com

Collaboration is Key

http://www.ilsoy.org/_data/files/isa/Hagenbuch_expansion_success_story.pdf

This is a link to a story written for the IL Soybean Assn. on our collaboration with them and other IL commodity groups to help gain the support of the LaSalle County Board.  We are grateful for all their help and support.

My speech to the County Board 6/13/11

To begin, I would like to thank you for the opportunity to speak in front of the whole Board.  I also wanted to say how refreshing it was to get a chance to speak with several of you this week.  I apologize if we were stuck playing phone tag, and would welcome the chance to speak with you one-on-one.  I am Kati Hagenbuch, my husband John is over there, as well as my in-laws, Albert & Eileen Hagenbuch.  We also have a group of several neighbors and community members who have come to show their support, and we are grateful.

We are 3^rd generation farmers in Waltham Township.  We are living in John’s grandfather’s home where the farm was established nearly 80 years ago.  John & I have three young children:  Bella, 5 years; Mae, 3 years; and Nolan, 2 years.  We also share the home farm with John’s parents, Albert & Eileen.  The Hagenbuch family has been grain and livestock farmers for all of their 80-year history.  John & I became involved in 2001 when our current hog-finishing barn was built. 

Our hog operation is currently a farrow-to-finish operation.  Meaning, we breed sows, deliver the piglets, and raise them to market weight all on our farm.  We enjoy the farrow-to-finish operation, but need to expand in order to remain competitive in a growing market.  As with most things, new construction is expensive.  In an effort to lessen the financial burden, we have opted to begin contract finishing for Illini Swine out of Kingston, IL.  This helps us defray the cost of the buildings by decreasing the input costs of raising hogs like feed and veterinary costs, while still allowing us to grow our established farm for the next generation of Hagenbuch farmers. 

Throughout this entire process of gathering information about the buildings, selecting a site, submitting our request to the IL Dept. of Ag, and waiting for the 30 day notification period to end, John & I have been concerned about stewardship; being stewards of the land, as well as, stewards in our neighborhood.  As farmers, we are obligated to protect the resources we have been given.  As you know, the IL Dept. of Ag and IL EPA also have many standards that we are required to meet.  John & I take it to heart to ensure that we are not only meeting, but exceeding all those standards in an effort to be good stewards of the land.  Also, as we began the siting process, we took several things into account.  First and foremost was the location of neighbors in the area.  As you may be aware, one of the sites is at our home farm where we are the most immediate residents, in addition to John’s parents, and our first cousins.  We also assessed road and traffic conditions, biosecurity issues, and prevailing wind directions.  To assist us in this process, we have hired Frank & West, Inc., an engineering firm from Springfield.  Frank & West, Inc. are well versed in the regulations and standards for livestock barns in the state of IL. 

As stated above, being stewards in our community also something John & I feel strongly about.  John & I have also spoken with the neighbors to discuss any questions or concerns that they may have in regards to the project.  In addition, notices were sent to any neighbor, or landowner, who lives within a ½ mile radius of each building site.  Also, public notice was put in the newspaper by the Dept. of Ag, regarding the 30-day window for a citizen to request a public hearing. 

One of the many benefits of raising hogs is the nutrients in the manure.  As we are currently doing, we plan on using the manure from the new buildings as organic fertilizer on our own farm.  We will continue to apply the manure by injecting it into the ground 6-8 inches deep.  This also decreases the odor by up to 75%.  Manure will be managed per guidelines established in our Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan, which will be filed with the State Dept. of Ag. 

Per statistics from the LaSalle County Farm Bureau’s last profile from the Census of Agriculture, the number of farms in the county decreased 12%.  We are here to make a positive change to that number.  Because of the locations of the two farms, our taxes will go to four different school districts and two different townships.  Since we are already an established family, we will not be adding more children to any of the area schools.  We will use local trucking contracts to help us haul the manure, and hire locally when needed. 

We urge you to vote against having a public hearing, on the basis that Public Notice has been made without objection.  By voting in favor of the Public hearing, you could be pushing our project back up to 60 days, which would in turn result in the buildings not be completed by the end of this year, and ultimately result in the County not receiving any tax revenue from it.

As stated before, our family is engrained in the history of LaSalle County.  We have been here for 80 years, and we plan to be here for at least 80 more.  We are continuing the legacy of our family farm, so that our children will be able to raise their children here.  We urge you to vote against having a public hearing, on the basis that Public Notice has been made without objection. Thank you. 

Our "One Pager" article

Hagenbuch Family Farms

John & Kati Hagenbuch

(815) 667-5898

hagenbuchfamilyfarms@gmail.com

Who are we?

• 3^rd generation family farmers in Waltham Township, living in the house where Charles Hagenbuch established the farm in 1933.
• Parents of the 4^th generation of Hagenbuch farmers:  Bella—5 years, Mae—3 years & Nolan—2 years.
• We currently own and operate a 75 sow farrow-to-finish operation at our home farm, in addition to crop production.

What is this?

• This building project is simply an expansion of our commitment to the safe and humane production of hogs.  Each site will have two finishing barns connected by an office and shower facility. 
• Each finishing barn can house up to 2,400 hogs, giving each site a MAXIMUM capacity of 4,800 hogs.
• The pigs will enter the building at 50 lbs. and leave at approximately 275 lbs.

Where are these buildings going?

• One site will be built on our home farm in Waltham Township where we currently house all of our animals.  Our home is the closest residence to that site.
• The other site will be built on another farm of ours in Ophir Township. 

Why are we building these buildings?

·        Our primary purpose behind building these new finishing barns is to continue the family farm legacy that the Hagenbuch family has been part of for nearly 80 years.

·        The world we live in is ever evolving.  As farmers, we take responsibility for the demand to feed the growing population. 

Why are we building these barns there?

• Ideally we would be able to build all of the finishing barns at our home site.  Due to regulations, however, we are unable to house this number of animals at that location. 
• We selected the Ophir site after considering road and traffic conditions, biosecurity issues, prevailing winds, and set-back guidelines.

What about all the regulations?

• We have hired an engineering firm to help us ensure that we are meeting all Local, State, and Federal guidelines.
• The State Dept. of Ag. has already been out to inspect the site locations.  They will also continue to follow the project, and they provide inspections at specific times during the building project.

What are we doing about the manure?

• We will be using the manure as fertilizer on our farms according to a CNMP (Comprehensive Nutrient Management Plan), which also has to be submitted to and approved by the Dept. of Ag.  Application will be done via injection into the ground, which decreases the odor by up to 75%. 

Expanding Hog Farm 101

As you may know by now, John  & I are in the process of expanding our current farrow-to-finish hog operation into a larger contract finishing operation.  As you also may know, we have had to defend ourselves, educate the public, and be very proactive in using the resources we have available to us.  We have become quick friends with the folks at IL Pork Producers Assn., especially Jim Kaitschuk.  Nic Anderson has also been an amazing advocate for us, in addition to several members of the IL Soybean Association. 

So what is the process, how do you get there, and what do you tell people?  What people don't know is that John & I have been researching this project for well over 4 months before we even began the permitting process.  For countless hours, we poured over building plans from over 15 companies.  We changed and edited building plans, feeder size and type, gating layouts, etc.  We also spent a lot of time discussing these plans with our banker, who is also a neighbor living directly east of one of the buildings. 

Once we received approval for the loan, we contacted Frank & West, Inc. (FWI) to solicit their help in the permitting and law following process.  At that time, all of our information was submitted (via FWI) to the IL Dept. of Ag for review.  IL Dept of Ag had 10 days to review all the siting requirements, and sent out a wonderful representative (really, no sarcasm here) to ensure that we were meeting all siting requirements.  After IL Dept. of Ag approved the two site locations, they sent their notice to the LaSalle County Board.  At the same time, notices were also sent to neighbors living within the 1/2 mile setback (radius) area around each site, and public notice was put in the newspaper.  Either the County Board, or any resident of the county who submitted a petition with 75 signatures could have requested a public info meeting.  The LaSalle County Board's Development committee was the first to review the letter from the state Dept. of Ag.  The committee voted to hold a public informational meeting, but wished to have the full Board's approval before they sent their response to the state. 

John & I were notified of the committee's decision when a reporter from the LaSalle NewsTribune contacted us.  Here is a link to that initial article that went out from the reporter who contacted us.  http://www.newstrib.com/articles/news/local/default.asp?Article=008243B06AC0812F6919E941B12F8075DB55A9857D53823F 
As you can read, the article had a definite spin on it.  Putting words like "Massive" in the title just showed that the report is not familiar with agriculture at all, and definitely displayed his opinion front and center.  Did I mention that this was front page news?  Well, as you can imagine, this article lit my fire, and I began making phone calls.  My first call was to Jim at IPPA, who was supportive, informative, and encouraging.  Three qualities that John & I desperately needed at the time.  Jim referred us also to Nic Anderson, who is the voice for most IL commodity groups.  Nic helped us put together what he called a "one pager", or a short, one page info sheet about our operation.  With some editing assistance from Jim, Nic, and Tim (also at IPPA), we were confident in sending our "one pager" to the NewsTribune in response to the article.  Our response article was placed in the Sat. edition of the NewsTribune just prior to the County Board meeting on Monday, June 13. 

Also, I started calling County Board members.  What I found was the Board was split in half.  Half of them knew about the project from the committee.  Half of them hadn't heard about it, although some admit reading the article.  Of the 29 phone calls, I spoke directly with 18 Board Members.  I left messages with all the rest.  In speaking with the other 18, I found only one member who was vehemently against us, but only because he was worried about the issue of being transparent for his voters.  I found many who claimed they were on the fence, which I was taking to mean they just didn't want to tell me no to my face.  The rest were surprisingly supportive.  Many said that I made up their minds because I took the time to ensure they were well aware of the situation.  Although we tried to gain their votes, we were up front and honest about how the process worked.  However, going in to the Board Meeting on the 13th, John & I were not positive about how the vote would go. 

At the meeting on Monday, June 13, 2011, I was given a chance to speak along with Monty Whipple, a neighbor and LaSalle County Farm Bureau's President.  John & I were surprised and a little frustrated when we entered the room and saw the packets that were placed on everyone's chairs with the drafted letter for the IL Dept of Ag right on the top of the pile.  Despite our frustration, I spoke on behalf of John & I about how our family has been part of the Ag community in our county for 80 years, and how we plan to be here for at least 80 more.  I also spoke about how this operation will have a positive impact on the two townships and four school districts involved.  After I finished, Monty spoke.  Monty's speech was eloquent, succinct, and professional.  He urged the Board to step aside and allow our family farm to continue it's legacy. 

Following our speeches, the Board needed to vote.  Chairman Hicks asked for the motion, to which no one responded.  After calling for the motion four times, one member made a motion to discuss and vote on whether or not to send the letter to Dept of Ag requesting a public info meeting.  Somewhere around 10 board members spoke, all of them stating that they were confident that we were not what they initially thought we were, namely a "Factory Farm" or "CAFO" (Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation).  Also, the chair of the Development committee got up and spoke on our behalf stating that the committee had "made a mistake".  We were excited, but still a little apprehensive as they called for the roll call vote.  However, we were pleased to hear 28 "NO's" ring out in the room.  The Board voted unanimously against having a public informational meeting.  Many of the Board members said that the phone call they got from us was the deciding factor.  Others were waiting to hear what Monty had to say.  Regardless, we were thrilled. 

After saying our thank you's to the Board, we left the room, and were immediately taken into an interview session with the local papers.  Here is the NewsTribune's article:
http://www.newstrib.com/articles/news/local/default.asp?Article=EDCE92E07C75E6C0FD955427E0AE278EE1F566DB6436ADB5
and the article from the Ottawa Times:
http://mywebtimes.com/archives/ottawa/display.php?id=434689&query=hagenbuch

After the whirlwind of the last month, we are pleased to announce our tentative ground breaking date of 7/5/11.  I will copy our "one pager" and a copy of my speech into another blog post.  I welcome questions, comments, and any feedback.  Thank you for your support. 

Have you hugged your farmer today?

I have.  I mean it.  Have you hugged your farmer today?  Have you eaten today?  Then you had better hug your farmer.  Despite the fact that our farmers are farming on less ground today, we are producing more bushels/acre than ever before.  Did you know that 98% of the farms in the USA are family farms?  So, perhaps you are in that group of people who thinks that farmers are abusing the land.  Did you know that small family farms comprise 81.8% of the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) and Wetlands Reserve Program (WRP) members? See this link to a USDA publication to see how important your farmers really are.  http://www.ers.usda.gov/publications/eib24/eib24b.pdf 

Alright, so who cares, right?  Anyone care about feeding the hungry?  Did you know that the US exported 3.7 million metric tons of soybeans to China this week????  And overall this week, we exported 8 million metric tons of soybeans!!!!  It's just soybeans, right?  Nope.  Soy is used as a meat protein substitute throughout the world.  In countries where meat is not readily available, soy can provide the protein necessary to maintain higher health standards and feed hungry people.  Visit http://www.wishh.org/ for more information on how soy is solving the hunger problem.

And then there is the issue of sustainability.  By 2050, our world population will have grown to over 9 BILLION people.  Who is faced with the responsibility of feeding that many people?  Farmers.  More importantly, AMERICAN farmers.  Our farmers are focused not only on producing more, but also on being good stewards of the land.  We have to be conservationists in order to help our land thrive for the next generation.  Overall, producers of corn and soybeans have decreased their use of resources and emissions by up to 20% since 2000. 

Overall, the message here is that our farmers are doing all that they can to help us all.  I ask you again.  Have you hugged your farmer today?  I have.

Good times, GREAT friends

It was such a wonderful weekend spent partying.  Saturday was Bella's 5th Bday party.  She picked Chinese food for her party, so we had HyVee cater for us.  It was great.  They send everything in disposable containers with place settings and serving utensils!  No dishes!!!  I made my first Barbie doll cake.  It turned out pretty good.  We had to use one of the Bratz type dolls because they are shorter than Barbie.  Bella got some really neat things for her bday, too.  She really enjoys the time with her family, so it was really fun.  We are so blessed that God let her and I stay on this Earth the day she was born.  Spending time with family this weekend was also wonderful.  We had the chance to spend time with our neice Evelynn and my sister and her hubby, plus both sets of grandparents, and John's sister, Laura.

We are also blessed to have great friends.  Sunday was the annual Daytona 500 party.  It is great together with Scott squared, Heather, and Sharon.  We can be ourselves and just hang out.  Plus the food and drinks are always wonderful.  We thought the race was amazing, too.  Enough with the Dale Earnhardt tributes, though.  Really?  We were excited to see most of our racers finish in the top 10, and we're happy for Trevor Bayne (sp?) to get a chance to start his career like that.  Bet he'll have a sponsor soon!

This week will be a busy one for us.  We are meeting with one of the Swine Producers we may contract with, and one of the potential builders.  There are lots of questions.  We are anticipating getting this project moving fairly quickly.  At least that is what we hope.  If all goes well, we could be ready to take our first group of hogs right at the beginning of December.  We are pleased to have the opportunity and pray that it continues to go positively. 

Thursday night, we drop the kids off with Grandmere and Papa.  John & I will be headed to FL bright and early Friday a.m.  We'll be spending the weekend at Disney, where I get to run my first official "race".  I'm excited and nervous all at the same time.  Tried to run this afternoon, but only got in 1.5 miles because it was so cold.  Maybe the warm weather will help.  Anyhow, then on Tuesday, 3/1, we head to Tampa for the second phase of our ASA/Dupont Young Leader Program.  We are excited to get a chance to see all our newly made friends again.  Much of our program is going to be spent focusing on Media training.  We need to help promote our industry as much as possible, so they are going to help us learn how.  We'll be back home Sat. 3/5.  We are pumped to go, but we'll be missing the kids, too.  Well, after a couple days at least. 

Here's some food for thought.  Our farmers today are using less land to produce more food for our ever growing world population.  By 2050, estimates are that the world population will top 9 billion people.  Who's going to feed all of them?  Your local farmer.  Have you hugged your farmer today?

Learning

So, I'm learning about this blog thing.  Seems interesting, like an online diary more or less.  I figured, "Okay, I can do this".  So here I am.  I am a farm wife and mom.  I have three children, Bella-5 years, Mae-3 years, and Nolan-1 year.  My hubby, John, and I have been married for just over 8 years, but we have been together for 15.  We've learned a lot about each other, and a lot about how we work together. 

We are in the midst of considering our options for increasing our production capacity for the hogs.  By the end of this year, we may be up to 7500 head.  It is an incredibly exciting venture for us, and we feel strongly that this is the best option for our family.  We would be making major changes like going from a farrow-to-finish operation to a wean-to-finish or feeder pig operation.  What we hope and pray is that our farm will survive to be there for our children and their families.  All of this, as I said above, has been a huge learning experience.  John & I are doing really well so far in the planning stages. 

So, as I said, I'm learning all about this process.  I will use this as a way to express lots of things:  mommy experiences, farm experiences, updates, and promote the farm.  Some of these things might tick people off, but hopefully they will inform and encourage more people to learn.  Please feel free to contact me at any time.  I love feedback!