Welcome to the Central Bridge Farms blog, we’re so glad you’re here! On this blog you can anticipate a description of our farming practices, cooking recipes, & short stories about our everyday life. We hope to share the highs & lows of modern-day farming with honest reflection. I prefer to refrain from political discussion, however, as a Baptist believing family, you can expect biblical principles and scripture throughout our blog. I’ve challenged myself to post on a weekly basis, whether small or large, to remain consistent with our audience (A.K.A. YOU!). My format might not always be the most formal, with the occasional “LOL” or emoji, but it’s just a reminder that my profession is farming and not writing, lol😊 Now let’s begin!
To recap our story, my husband, John, & I met while showing cows at our local county fair in 2018 and it was love at first sight. We were married in September 2020 and became the official fourth generation owners of his family’s cattle farm in May 2022. I currently run the farm full-time while caring for our 18-month-old, and John works as a technician for the local soil & water conservation district. I have my bachelor’s degree in animal science & John has his in agricultural business. Education is important to us and as young farmers we understand that there’s a lot we don’t know yet. We’re anxious to expand our knowledge and welcome the opportunity to learn from others.
Central Bridge Farms was founded in 1926, just prior to the Great Depression, and originally operated as a chicken farm. It wasn’t until 1964 that the first Black Angus cow was introduced by my husband’s grandfather, John R. (A.K.A. Grandpa John). Over the next several years Grandpa John grew the herd to exceed 200 head of registered Black Angus cattle. At this time, the farm was a cow-calf operation, meaning we raised brood cows (mama cows) on the farm for calving purposes. The calf would be raised by its mom until weaning, at about six-months old. Once weaned the calves (now referred to as “feeder calves”) would be sold. This would generate one paycheck for the farm on an annual basis. With frugal budgeting, this paycheck would be enough to maintain the farm from year-to-year, and therefore a successful business model throughout the 1980’s.
Fast forward to 2012. My husband’s father, Mark, and older brother, Robert, who both served in the Army, were deployed to Afghanistan. Due to the deployment and shortage of farm help, the beef herd was reduced to only fifteen brood cows. During Mark’s absence, John began management of the day-to-day operations under the mentorship of Grandpa John.
When Mark and Robert returned from their deployment, the herd began to rebuild, but not to the extent of the years prior. The rebuilding process was costly and timely. Leased land that had been used in the past had been bought up or developed, the cost of expenses had increased, while the price of feeder calves had remained the same. These factors, in addition to selling only thirty feeder calves a year, as opposed to eighty+, was taking a financial toll on the family farm. The farm wasn’t making money, or breaking even, we were losing money.
So like many newly-wed couples, my husband and I started off broke, but full of hopes and dreams. The past few years have been a complete whirlwind as we’ve transitioned from the farm’s old business model. Instead of one feeder calf sale a year with no control over the market price, we now market directly to consumers. And while this may seem like a simple fix, it has been quite an ordeal. We’ve had to retain calves for two years (which means more livestock to feed through the winter months), split the brood cows into a spring & fall calving season (to provide consistent finished livestock year-round), schedule harvest dates, manage freezer space/inventories, calculate competitive meat prices, & build a strong customer base.
When we first began marketing directly to consumers, it was mostly quarters & halves to people we knew locally. As we grew, we started to attend farmer’s markets. But marketing beef in a cooler is not a very captivating sight. To attract customers’ attention, we got licensed to sell baked goods. Because who can resist a giant chocolate chip cookie??? We filled the market table with sweets and stored our meat coolers below. Pretty soon our loving customers granted us the nickname of “the butcher & the baker.” It wasn’t long before we had people asking if we had a store so they could pick up products between markets. So inevitably, we built a farm store.
The term “built” should be taken rather lightly here as neither myself nor my husband have the skills of a carpenter, lol. We renovated a preexisting structure, which happened to be the old egg wash building, into a store. We added some drywall, fresh paint, and a couple freezers. These were humble beginnings; however, it was a good start. The markets continued to bring in new customers to our store and it’s been a rather symbiotic relationship since. Soon customers were asking for more products, so we added pork, chickens, and a garden to our homestead. Which brings us to the current day.
I am happy to announce that Central Bridge Farms is no longer a feeder calf supplier as we have transitioned fully into direct marketing! This has been made possible through the utilization of three direct market outlets. The first avenue for direct marketing has been our farm store (which has been renovated & expanded) and other local farm stands. The second form of direct marketing has been through attendance at farmer’s markets. And our third form of direct marketing is brand new!!! We have launched our own website, centralbridgefarms.com! This means we now have the ability to ship our meat & homemade products anywhere in the United States! (As you can tell by all my explanation points, I am so excited about this!)
I have decided to start this blog to coincide with the launch of our website so that we can share the story of our farm, the people, the land, and the livestock behind our products. And while this initial introduction has been about the formation and transformation of our business, I reassure you that our farm is about so much more than that. I truly believe that our livestock live happy and fulfilling lives, raised the way God intended. We are grateful to God for His many blessings and for the family & friends He’s placed in our lives to help us on this journey. Our story is far from over, so we’re happy you’ve joined us for the ride!
May we give God the glory in all that we do.
Sincerely,
Mattea VanDerwerken
Central Bridge Farms