Moms connect with families to learn about farming practices

MAPLE PARK, Ill. — Content-creating moms and their families from the Chicagoland area visited farms to learn directly from farmers about how they raise livestock and grow crops on their operations.

“Our goal is for you to have a unique experience, meet a farmer and have a connection,” said Lindsay Croke, director of communications and marketing for IL Corn, which hosted the event together with Illinois Farm Bureau.

The Rows & Roundtables event featured a tour of the Larson-Martz family farm.

“We farm about 7,000 acres and grow wheat, corn and soybeans,” said Justin Martz. “We also have a custom feedlot where we feed about 7,000 head of cattle each year.”

Several members of the family are involved with the operation.

“My mom, Lynn, is our business manager. She does the grain marketing, and my dad, Mike, runs the feedlot and makes sure we’re keeping it full,” Martz said.

“My uncle, Norm, manages the crops and I work hand in hand with him,” he said. “I manage the seed purchasing and I also am sitting in a tractor quite a bit.”

At the feedlot, the visitors learned about the ultrasound process that the cattlemen use to help market the cattle.

“Our job is to try to sell cattle at their best time — that is why we ultrasound the cattle,” Martz said.

By using a transducer, an image is taken of the ribeye and that is combined with the weight of the animals to determine how much longer that animal should be fed to get it to its optimum point.

“We understand that not every animal is created equal, so the ultrasound system helps us sort the animals,” Martz said.

The cattlemen use parasitic wasps to reduce the fly population around the cattle barns.

“We sprinkle them around our feedlot every Wednesday afternoon, and when they hatch, they eat the eggs of the flies,” Martz said.

“That limits our flies and it is a natural way to control flies on our farm without using pesticides,” he said.

In 2019, the farmers installed a solar system to help reduce the cost of electricity for their operation.

“The solar system provides electricity for the cattle operation,” the uncle said.

“In the summertime, we are running a lot of fans in the barns,” Martz added. “And in winter we have to heat the waterers to make sure they do not freeze.”

In the harvested wheat field, the visitors learned about pesticide applications and saw a sprayer demonstration.

“Waterhemp is probably the most prolific weed that we have because it kicks out 1 million seeds per plant,” Martz said. “That weed can decimate a field real fast if it goes to seed.”

In addition, weeds utilize nutrients in the soil.

“We fertilize crops for a certain yield, so we do not want the weeds to take up all those nutrients,” Martz said.

Cost of applying pesticides is an important consideration for farmers, he told the moms.

“Farmers don’t just like to spray products — those products have to provide a return,” he stressed.

Farmers must be certified by the state of Illinois and pass a test to be able to purchase and apply pesticides on their farm.

“Part of the training that I do for applying chemicals includes knowing and understanding the label that is on every chemical,” said Chris Gould, who farms near Maple Park and is a district board member for IL Corn.

“You have to follow the label, and if you don’t, you are breaking federal law,” he noted.

Prior to the tour of the Larson-Martz family farm, the Chicago parent influencers each toured farms individually.

Natalie Minarich is a mom of five children and she visited Heather and Tyson Dollinger’s farm near Mazon.

“One thing I was really surprised about was that I did not realize there was so much training involved in using chemicals,” Minarich said.

“My husband and I kept saying over and over that we cannot believe how much math and science goes into farming,” she said.

“I am so grateful for this entire experience,” said Dana Harf, a mom of three kids.

“I am a content creator and I help moms feel supported and inspired in everyday life,” she said. “I feel like the work that farmers do is so important and I am happy to be here.”

In addition to working as a pharmacist, Michele Narsinghani also writes a food blog and has two boys. She visited Jim and Pam Robbins’ farm near Peotone.

“We had the best time and it was really great to go to a farm and see how things are actually being done,” Narsinghani said.

“We also talked about GM products and that cleared things up and made me really excited to share the information,” she said.

Natalie Grusling-Huber met with Bryan VanBogaert, the president of the Kane County Corn Growers Association.

“The See & Spray technology that identifies the weeds and sprays accordingly, without a lot of waste was surprising to me,” said the content creator and mom of three kids.

The special gathering is just one of the many ways that the Illinois Farm Families coalition works to connect with consumers.

The coalition includes members of the Illinois Corn Growers Association, Illinois Soybean Association, Illinois Beef Association, Illinois Pork Producers Association, Midwest Dairy and IFB.

“One of the efforts we have is called Innovation Grows Here,” Croke said. “This is where we showcase the innovation, technology and the pursuit by farmers of always getting better.

“Our overall goal is to build trust in farmers and farming practices,” she said. “We bring that mission to life with farmers and experts as we talk about difficult topics.”