May is
Manson teen grows cattle business
By DARCY DOUGHERTY MAULSBY
“We need landowners who care more about helping the next generation get started in farming than earning top-dollar rent. I’m here to prove that the future of farming is in good hands and won’t end with me. I want to help our farms remain family farms.”
Farm News writer
M
ANSON — When a blizzard blasted northern Iowa right before Christmas 2022, it unleashed the kind of weather that can spell trouble for livestock producers. Jackson Quade’s cattle feed bunks kept filling up with snow as the relentless winds raged. “I didn’t mind the challenge,” said Quade, 17, who is carrying on his family’s farming heritage east of Manson. While he hasn’t graduated from high school yet, Quade isn’t waiting to start farming. He bought his first group of 22 beef cattle in November 2022, sold them in early April and bought another 51 calves this spring. “I buy them at 350 to 400 pounds and sell them around 800 pounds,” said Quade, who is building a reputation at area sale barns, from Algona to Denison to Dunlap, for raising highquality cattle. He’s also one of the newest members of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association. “I like raising steers, and I prefer black cattle,” said Quade, who will receive his diploma from Manson Northwest Webster High School this May. Quade farms with his dad, Paul, and his uncle Tim Quade, plus he started sharecropping 75 acres of corn and soybeans in 2022. For his cattle business, Quade uses the concrete feedbunks and shed that his grandfather Richard Oberhelmer used when he was raising cattle. Quade also invested in a water tank, bulk bin, bale feeder, livestock trailer and manure spreader, plus he converted some hog buildings to hold his smaller cattle. “I’d like to get started in the cow-calf business someday soon and also have a small feedlot,” said Quade, who plans to study agriculture at Iowa
-Farm News photos by Darcy Dougherty Maulsby
JACKSON QUADE, 17, of rural Manson, bought his first group of 22 beef cattle in November 2022, sold them in early April and bought another 51 calves this spring. BELOW: Jackson Quade works closely with Colin Carlson, head salesman and nutritionist for Webb’s Feed Inc. in Rockwell City, to provide high-quality feed rations and nutrition for his beef cattle.
JACKSON QUADE, Manson teen, cattle farmer Central this fall. Rooted in agriculture Farming has been a lifelong passion for Quade, the youngest of five children (and the only son). When Paul and Kim Quade were selecting new carpeting for their home when their children were young, their son made his preference known. “I wanted the carpet that made the best tracks when I drove my farm toys on it, so I could see where I’d been,” Quade said. Not only did Quade enjoy helping on the farm, but he also accompanied his dad to meetings so he could learn more about agriculture. When he was in eighth grade, Quade helped start the FFA Discovery Chapter at his school and served as the chapter president. In high school, he continued to grow his leadership skills through FFA, earning the FFA Chapter Degree and FFA Iowa Degree. Quade also credits his grandfather Richard Oberhelman for helping him learn what it takes to succeed in cattle production, including saving money for the lean times. “Farming presents different challenges every year,” said Quade, a National Honor Society member. “It seems we can get a few good years, and then they’re erased quickly by several bad ones where you go into recovery mode.” Oberhelman, 85, raised
livestock for 65 years. He enjoys stopping by the farm to see how Quade is getting along. “It’s great to see Jackson’s excitement for agriculture and his interest in raising beef cattle,” said Oberhelman, who raised polled Herefords, as well as Angus and Simmental cattle. Quade works closely with Colin Carlson, head salesman and nutritionist for Webb’s Feed Inc. in Rockwell City. “Jackson is a very sharp guy who asks a lot of smart questions about feed rations and nutrition,” said Carlson, who also operates Carlson Cattle, a show cattle business focused on Angus show heifers and purebred Simmental heifers. “He wants to learn how to maximize his feed in terms of cost per head per day. He keeps price in mind, but he doesn’t want to throw quality out the window, either.” Where are the young cattle producers? Iowa remains a prime location to raise cattle. It’s among the top five states in America for the number of cattle on feed, according to January 2023 data from the National Agricultural Statistics Service. Yet there are challenges ahead regarding beef farm succession, noted Lee Schulz, an Iowa State University Extension ag economist. See QUADE, Page 7C
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