Kelly Garrett has a knack for facing down obstacles and marching on as if there was never any hurdle. In 25 years, he has grown a farming enterprise in western Iowa that started with 730 rented acres and 35 cows into a multifaceted venture with vertical integration and drive for excellence.
“Today we farm 7,000 acres and employ a staff of 75 across all of the entities,” Garrett says. “Our farming business has seen significant growth over the past two decades. I have consistently strived to create intentional congruence among the different parts and ensure they work together seamlessly and support each other to achieve shared success.”
For his entrepreneurial achievements, business progress and community leadership, Garrett was named a 2024 Top Producer of the Year Finalist, which is a program sponsored by BASF, Case IH, and Rabo AgriFinance.
Where does Garrett’s internal motivation spark from? The Arion, Iowa farmer says the family he and wife, Amber, have created are the source. Self-described, Garrett says he and Amber both share a competitive nature as well as strong determination.
“In just four years, we were blessed with the arrival of three boys: Connor, Colin and Cael,” he says. “This led me to dedicate myself to build a solid foundation that would allow all three boys to continue our family’s farming tradition as the seventh generation. My life’s purpose became creating a successful operation where I wouldn’t have to turn any of them away if they decided to join me in farming.”
Best Lesson Learned
As a beginning farmer, Kelly Garrett initially farmed with his father, Gene, and uncle, Kevin.
“My parents allowed us to participate in the operation and co-signed the initial funds for our first years of farming,” Garrett says. They did not give us anything except an opportunity.”
The takeaways forged in those early years set a foundation for how Garrett manages his business today.
“If we received a bill, such as $100.51, my mother would keep track of who paid the odd cent, and the other person would pay it the next time.
This attention to detail and the mindset of not getting something for free instilled in me an appreciation for hard-earned money. Reflecting on it now, this was the best gift they could have given me, and I do not take it for granted.”
Unquenched Curiosity
He credits learning, personal growth and self-awareness to realize the potential for advancing the business. In addition to farming, Garrett has created a portfolio including a trucking business, ag retail entity, fertility business, marketing/social influence platform, and a local service station. One of his advisers says the cohesive thread throughout the ventures is the expectation for high performance.
In managing multiple ventures, Garrett says, “Some people ask how I deal with all the headaches. I say there are no headaches, there are just unrealistic expectations. If you plant 300 acres of corn in a day, that’s great, but you can’t expect to do that every day.”
When others might see themselves pinned in a corner, Garrett has a way of keeping his peripheral vision and looking out onto the horizon.
In 2007, an employee suggested using the truck he operated for specialized trucking with the step deck flatbed during slower periods. That suggestion spun into Garrett Trucking.
“This was the first step to diversify our revenue sources so we would be able to get through the unpredictable and uncontrollable times that are inherently a part of farming,” he says.
Notably, the past 10 years have sparked multipronged entrepreneurship in Garrett. 2014 was a catalyst for him applying his intense focus on the agronomy side of his farm.
“We experienced significant problems with northern corn leaf blight,” he says. “The disease spread like wildfire and ended up taking more than 30 bu. per acre off our corn yields.”
Compelled to step up his agronomic knowledge, Garrett then met Steve Killpack, an agronomist and mentor who he says introduced him to an unconventional approach to agronomy.
This emboldened the decision in 2016 to install 78 acres of Netafim drip irrigation. With the hills of western Iowa prohibitive to pivot irrigation, Garrett took a calculated risk of trying this technique and has since installed almost 400 acres of drip tape.
Killpack and Garrett developed a product they call “Plant Food,” which is a soil enhancement sourced as a byproduct from soybean processing facilities. First used on his own farm, it’s now sold to neighboring farms as a source of sulfur and other crop nutrients.
“After receiving soap stock from a soybean crushing facility, Feed Energy subjects this soap stock to an acidulation process, resulting in the creation of liquid animal feed,” Garrett explains. “However, this process also produces a secondary byproduct that Feed Energy has no use for and needs to dispose of. This byproduct is a natural liquid with sulfur content and a composition analysis of 15-80-20-80S.”
From Concept To Business
Today, Garrett’s business, KSX, hauls 25 loads of Plant Food a day, which is then applied to more than 45,000 acres via drip tape and self-propelled sprayers.
“Our farm alone saves more than $900,000 per year on fertilizer as a result, and I take great pride in the positive environmental impact we are making through regenerative practices like using Plant Food,” Garrett says.
His commitment to no-till, alternative fertilizer sources and regenerative practices led to 2020 when Garrett became the first farmer in the U.S. to sell a carbon credit via the now defunct Nori platform. In 2022, he was recognized as the Farmer of the Year by Field to Market. Today, he works with TruTerra as well as other partners.
In the quest to weatherproof his crop and boost yields, Garrett started entering corn yield contests. He placed first in Iowa’s no-till category in 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021. His yield performance elevated him to second place nationally in 2019 with 357 bu. and third nationally in 2021 with 388 bu.
“Our achievements in the NCGA Yield Contest brought us increased recognition, and we connected with innovative farmers to eventually co-found XtremeAg,” he explains. “This is an online platform we launched in 2020 with the aim of assisting other farmers in achieving their goals through smarter, more sustainable and regenerative farming practices.”
The company has assembled a handful of farmers across the country who engage in partnerships with input, technology and equipment companies to test drive products on their farms. Then they post and share regular reports on social media and via XtremeAg platforms.
“I want to solve the challenge in front of me,” he says. “If it’s knocking me down, it’s knocking down other producers. And I’ll find the solution, a profitable way through, and then I’ll share it.”
Spawning out from XtremeAg, Garrett partnered with two agronomists, Mike Evans and Mike Wingrove, to start Integrated Ag Solutions.
“We started a business to sell and service the products I learned about via ExtremeAg because no on else was doing it,” Garrett says.
Greatest Challenge of Them All
One unforeseeable challenge continues to weigh on Garrett and his family. On July 22, 2023, Colin, their middle son, was killed in a traffic accident at the age of 22.
Colin had just returned to the farm after graduating from Iowa State University, and he had started a new venture for the Garretts, GLC Beef, a direct-to-consumer beef business.
“We want our family to move forward,” Garrett says. “He would want his two brothers to carry the torch and achieve the success with GLC Beef he envisioned.”
The family established the Colin Garrett Memorial Scholarship Fund and the Colin Garrett Foundation, which has raised more than $130,000 in support of local education and FFA.
This past Labor Day marked the two-year anniversary for GLC Beef, and Garrett says it’s growing. Sales are $10,000 per month more than the previous year.
In The Business of Time
“I’m a time company. I only have so much time to get things done,” Garrett says. “So every business, every entity needs to stand on its own financially. Success is defined by being profitable, but we have to enjoy it, and we have to help people.”
Another recent example of revealing opportunity is his acquisition of the local service station, Ettleman’s Town & Country. Not only did he previously purchase his fuel there, but his crews would eat lunch there. And now the lunch menu is supplied by GLC Beef.
As a leader, he takes his role as quarterback and chief inspiration officer seriously.
“I believe I need to appear calm, cool and collected and act like it’s easy,” he says. “But it’s not easy. It takes blood, sweat and tears. People don’t see the sleepless nights, nor do they understand the stress, the fears and the insecurity. It’s because I put up the wall to inspire confidence in the whole team.”
When reflecting on two and half decades of building this confluence of service businesses, he says a key characteristic is being sure of yourself and your decisions.
“Doubters have slowed me down because I questioned myself,” he says. “I now educate myself so well, I don’t care what anyone else says or thinks.”
He’s also reached a milestone as sons Cael and Connor have become part of the farm full time. Cael is focusing his efforts on the livestock side; Connor is focused on the crop side.
For future growth, he’ll tap the same deep well of courage he’s come to rely on.
“I continue to set goals and work toward achieving them with continuous improvement. There are no limits when you have belief and passion for what you do,” he says.
