HERSEY— Family farms are a staple of both Mecosta and Osceola counties, and residents and visitors can often spot construction and improvement projects at some farms.
One Reed City family, the Carmichaels, have started work on building a new state-of-the-art barn to improve processes and create more space on the farm.
Christina Carmichael, owner and operator of the family’s farm, has been farming for years and said the family wanted to build the barn to improve daily operations.
Carmichael is a fifth-generation farmer on their family farm which has been farmed for over 100 years. She farms over 1,000 acres with the help of her parents, Jerry and Lynn Mitchell, and her husband of 11 years, Jeff.
The couple has three kids: Emmett, 9; Caden, 6; and Brianna, 4. The Carmichael kids have been raised on the farm and are the sixth generation.
“I do most anything on the farm wherever I am needed. I mostly manage the dairy steer operation,” Christina Carmichael said. “We decided to build the facility to become more efficient and reduce the amount of labor that it takes to raise dairy steers. It will also allow more flexibility on labor.”
“We used to milk cows, but the struggles in the dairy industry forced us to change our business,” she added. “We sold our cows in 2019. I work a lot with MSU extension agents that helped me develop a plan to move the business from a dairy farm to a dairy steer farm. We now raise baby bull calves from one to two days old all the way up to market beef. We also sell freezer beef.”
The new barn, at 814 190th Avenue in Hersey, is set to take around two to three months to complete construction and will serve as a new feeding location for the farm’s cow calves.
The family grows almost all of the feed for their steers directly on the farm, such as corn, wheat, rye, and hay. The farm has 600 head of steers.
Carmichael said the new barn will allow for new electronic systems to take over much of the work that she does normally hands-on with the cows.
“The goal of the project is to reduce the amount of labor and time it takes to feed and manage so many baby calves,” Carmichael said. “We also hope to achieve better rates of gain on our calves because they will be able to eat more often than I have time in a day to feed them. It also allows for social development at an earlier age.”
“My goals for the upcoming year are to make this barn a success for our business and continue to become more profitable,” she added. “We hope to be more productive with less labor-intensive.”
The barn is being built with the help of Welch Building LLC and Greenstone Farm Credit Services. It is being painted green as a nod to the family’s dedication to and love for the Michigan State Spartans. Both Carmichael and her husband graduated from MSU.
Carmichael said she came back after college to take over the family business, and the new building will give her some much-needed free time, and make things a lot easier for the farm.
“It will help with the management of the calves,” Carmichael said. “It also will allow for a better environment that will allow us to more efficiently handle and care for the calves.
"It will help me personally by giving me more flexibility in my time. I am currently tied down to this farm, and having to miss out on doing things with my family or showing up late after I have the chores done has been a challenge.”
“It will also allow me to help in other areas of the farm getting things done quicker because I won’t be stuck feeding calves,” she added.
Carmichael said life on the farm is hard work, but worth it in the long run.
“My favorite part about life on the farm is that I get to raise my family on the farm just like I was raised,” Carmichael said. “I get to carry on my family legacy by keeping the family farm business going. I love this way of life. God has blessed us in so many ways. I also enjoy seeing the fruits of my labor make our family business a success.”
Moving forward, Carmichael said she hopes the new barn will be completed sooner rather than later so that the family can begin using it as a fully functioning facility, and that the family will continue to look for ways to improve their farm and operations.
“We are always looking for improvements or efficiencies to help make the farm better or more profitable,” Carmichael said. “If a technology comes along that we feel will be beneficial to our farm we will implement it.”
"feed" - Google News
August 27, 2021 at 05:09PM
https://ift.tt/3gFR5BU
Reed City farmers use robotics to feed animals - The Pioneer
"feed" - Google News
https://ift.tt/2z3xEQN
https://ift.tt/2yko4c8
Bagikan Berita Ini
0 Response to "Reed City farmers use robotics to feed animals - The Pioneer"
Post a Comment