Taking On The Family Business

I grew up going to auctions. Livestock auctions, equipment auctions; whatever was going on, my Dad and I were there. I’ve been around livestock and farming my entire life. In 1997, my parents bought Hayfield Farm so that my sister and I could get involved in 4-H and raise animals for show and sale. The 4-H program teaches you the characteristics of high quality livestock, as well as the signs of poor livestock. As part of the 4-H judging board, I would assess a number of livestock, grade them, articulate their strengths and weaknesses, and discuss what this means as far as the quality of their meat. 

My Dad loved cow and calf pairs and we still raise them today. Countless calves have been born and raised here on the property. You learn a lot about your commitment to your craft when you are covered head to toe in mud, trying to wrestle a stubborn calf to get it to take a bottle. After high school and 4-H, I continued to raise and feed steers on my own. I began studying the market and using what I’d learned to select quality animals at auction to begin expanding the farm.

I don’t think that my Dad ever planned for the farm to get to the scale of where it is now. We sold wholesale beef to friends and family, but we never talked about retail cuts, a website, restaurant partnerships, or farmer’s markets. My parents did it to raise us with the lessons you learn from raising and caring for animals.

A few years ago, Erica came along, and she really pushed to expand and make Hayfield Farm what it is now. She has a passion for learning and teaching people about farming, raising animals, and what quality practices can do for the products that show up on the dinner table. There is a lot of confusion surrounding agriculture, especially when it comes to meats and animals. Through transparency and education, she gets our customers involved in what they are eating and learning so that they can make the right decisions for themselves and their families. 

We are lucky to live in a community that is so invested in the local businesses around them and goes the extra mile to show their support. We hope to continue to grow, get people the quality, nutritious products that they want, and continue to be involved in our community. Continuing on what was passed down from my parents is very important to both of us; it’s become our entire life and it’s something that we want to continue to grow with our family and pass down to our future kids. 

-Dylan Butler