Farm Update: Yearly Training

(New landscaping around the finally finished office!)

It's been a busy month so far, with not much time for me to sit down.  Over the past two weeks, I have been putting together our chore schedule.  The chore schedule is a chart that lists every person working on the farm by the location they work at each month.  I make the schedule 6 months at a time, with each person rotating at least once to a different job than they normally do.  This keeps the work crews from getting grumpy by seeing too much of each other, and it means that every job has at least 2 people that can do it.   Most people like switching jobs, and everyone has some input as to where they work.  It's nice to have the schedule done for a few more months, since it involves so many people working together.

In the field, the crops are growing like mad.  The field crew is scouting the fields, and then deciding whether we need to apply any herbicides.  On our farm, we use hog manure as a good source of fertilizer, but some of our fields don't get any manure put on, so then we have to use another source of nitrogen, anhydrous ammonia, to get the crops the nitrogen they need.  The anhydrous is applied in June, so that is well underway.

(Corn is two feet tall)

The biggest project for me personally in June is the start of our annual animal care training.  I meet with every person that works with a pig from the farm, and train them on handling and care.  In all, I probably train 150-200 people, mostly in groups of 5 or less. This allows for a lot individual time, where I can answer questions and tailor each session to the specific group needs.  During this time, I will personally see every pig on the farm.

This training is a lot of work, but it makes sure that each person on the farm understands our standards.  It prepares each farm for audit, and makes sure that all of the records are being kept up to date. By doing these checks, I can make sure that nobody gets too far out of line, and that any questions get answered.  The training may only formally happen once a year, but on a weekly basis, we (being myself and the others on the farm) are looking at things we could do to improve our animal care.  We are having conversations about animal care everyday with somebody on the farm.  It may not be the easiest thing I do all year, but it is one of the most important.