One day changed Ron Rabou’s life forever. His father collapsed and, despite his CPR efforts, he couldn’t save him. The man he admired, confided in and learned how to farm from was gone in an instant — and his whole world quickly changed.
His family has been farming in Alvin, Wyo., since the early 1900s and many members of the family were involved, in some facet, in the operation. When his dad died, the operation split, and he found himself left with his grandparent’s farmhouse and about 800 acres to support his family.
“We started with right around 800 acres of farmland. Today we farm about 8,000, acres and we’re certified organic,” Rabou says. Leaving his family operation and the heritage it represented was hard, but it’s a choice that has worked for him and his family.
“There’s a sense of pride in putting together what we’ve been able to put together,” he explains. “It’s a completely different business now than it was when my dad was alive 20 years ago, but we’ve been able to keep up with those changes.”
Price makers
When he first started converting to certified organic, including wheat, green lentils, garbanzo beans and yellow peas, it was all about economics. Today he’s a firm believer in the crops he’s producing, in the safety they provide consumers and the opportunities they provide him.
“In the agriculture world where I grew up, we raised a couple of crops, cattle and took them to market and got what we got,” he says. “We’ve changed that model here on our farm. We work with a variety of buyers all over the country. Before we plant, we ask, what do you need? We want to make sure that we’re getting the price for our crop to make our operation cash flow and things that fit with our farm model.”
In addition to securing markets for the crop, Rabou focuses on bottom line not just yield. While input prices and markets continue to squeeze farmer profits, he says getting creative with organic and seeking out new organic markets made all the difference.
“I don’t have the highest yielding crop in the county, but I probably have one of the highest profit margins of crops in the county,” Rabou says. “My grain already has a home before we put it in the ground.”
Know the upfront risks
If you’re looking to diversify, whether it’s a foray into livestock production, new crops or trying organic or regenerative ag, it can be intimidating. In many cases, it takes rethinking the entire way you farm and do business.
“If I’m being honest, I was probably a little bit scared moving into the [organic] industry because I didn’t know what to expect,” Rabou says.
He had to invest in new machinery, grain storage, converting land to organic and many other hurdles. In the end, it was worth it.
“A producer making the transition needs a strong balance sheet in order to weather lower returns during transition,” says Stephen Nichols, Rabo AgriFinance senior analyst for grains and oilseeds.
It takes three years to fully transition to organic, and in that time, farmers don’t receive premiums associated with organic production. These are often the hardest years and what stop many producers from taking the leap into organic production.
Organic Production Rises Again to Meet Demand
Source: Mercaris Commodity Outlook (U.S. stats)
- Number of certified organic operations: 19,888 in 2020 to 2021, a 4% increase year over year.
- Organic corn for livestock feed will increase 6% year over year during the 2020/21 marketing year.
- Organic soybean crust is projection to increase 13% year over year in 2020/21.
- Non-GMO soybean planted acres expanded 19% year over year in 2020.
- Non-GMO corn planted acres increased 8% year over year in 2020.
