2020 - Volume #44, Issue #5, Page #08
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FSA Youth Loan Gave Sisters Their Start In Swine
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In 2016, they brought their first batch of 25 45-lb. pigs to the family’s Ardoch, N.D., farm. They are currently raising 70 hogs. Their business, Little Farm on the Prairie, has managed to make its loan payments, cover costs, and pay the sisters who have learned a lot about both pig farming and direct marketing.
It started with their dad, Craig Nice. When he learned about FSA’s low-interest youth loans, for 10 to 20-year-olds that don’t require a co-signer, he presented the idea to his two oldest daughters.
Alexis was onboard with the idea right away, and Elizabeth agreed to be her partner. They created a business plan, connected with the local extension office to serve as their sponsor, and figured out what they would need to get started. They each received a $5,000 loan to cover startup costs.
“We built a lean-to barn, and bought fencing, fence posts, a grinder for feed, and feeders and a trailer,” Alexis says.
When the pigs arrived in May, so did the work. The sisters learned quickly how adept pigs are at digging under a fence.
“We’ve done our fair share of chasing pigs that got out in the yard,” Alexis says. After a few years they learned to put electric wire near the ground. Though it adds a daily chore of digging away mud from the fence to ensure the wire doesn’t get wet and short out, the work saves a lot of pig chasing.
Besides daily chores, the girls learned to keep records with the help of their mom. Their dad helps with chores when they need him and he hauls loads of corn from the elevator for them to grind and mix with soybean meal and vitamins for the feed ration, based on North Dakota State University recommendations.
For the last couple of years, they switched to Blue Butt pigs purchased from NDSU’s swine program. They pay more for the Yorkshire/Hampshire cross, but have learned that better breeding makes a difference in how fast the hogs are ready for market.
With experience, the Nice sisters increased their herd size from 25 to 50. They unexpectedly got 70 pigs this spring, and due to Covid-19 it’s become a marketing challenge for them.
“We were set up to butcher 50 hogs in Casselton, N.D., in October and December,” Alexis says, noting they line up buyers for all the hogs beforehand. That left 20 hogs to market and find someone to butcher them. With Covid-19, small processors have been inundated with work and many don’t have openings until 2021.
The sisters found a slot for 5 hogs to be butchered in Karlstad, Minn., but still had 15 hogs left. They marketed some to individuals for pig roasts, and were still looking for customers/butchers for about 8 hogs in mid-August. Between using social media (Facebook), a proud grandfather who likes to put up flyers about the hogs for sale, and customers spreading the word about the good meat, Craig says his daughters have marketed well.
“My grandpa buys one for himself, and his hobby is making bacon, sausage and pulled pork, and he shares the meat with us. It is really good,” Alexis says.
Despite having to get up early to do chores and all the work involved - including cleaning out the pen and continuous fence work, the sisters agree raising hogs has been a valuable experience.
“It’s teaching us responsibility, money management and things other kids our age might not learn,” Elizabeth says.
It also helps pay some University of North Dakota expenses for Alexis, who commutes to college from home.
The sisters plan to keep raising swine, and their younger sisters, Emma, 12, and Josephine, 6, are waiting their turn to take over Little Farm on the Prairie.
Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Little Farm on the Prairie, Facebook: Little Farm on the Prairie). For loan program information, go to www.usda.gov.
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