Business Matters 2020 | Page 31

About 20 years ago the Lawsons diversified into the poultry business and today operate six broiler houses on their ranch near Joaquin. a typical day on the farm. “It’s just kind of responding to whatever is happening, some days if cows are having calves they might need a little help,” she said. “But we love it, you’ve got to love it.” Keys to survival John Paul Lawson says diversification is among the keys of not only surviving, but thriving, with the up-and-down cycles of being a small operator in the farming and ranching business. John Paul and Dixie Lawson operate the Lawson Ranch near Joaquin and were named the Farm Family of the Year for Shelby County at the 100th Anniversary Banquet of the Shelby County Chamber of Commerce in November. The couple started out in the 1970s in the cattle business and over the years branched out into other areas. In 1999 the Lawsons got started in the poultry business and today own and operate a six-house broiler operation contracted to Pilgrim’s Pride. Entering the poultry business has helped provide a revenue stream which is much more predictable than raising cattle, or growing hay and other crops. “The poultry business has been a good move for us,” he said. “Over the years that has allowed us to expand and purchase more property.” In addition to wide market swings for prices on cattle, corn and hay, Lawson said the unpredictability of the weather is always a challenge. “We went through a drought back in 2011 like one I don’t think my dad or granddad had ever seen,” Lawson said. “That makes you appreciate average or normal.” That severe drought helped make him appreciate the wet spells with plenty of rain in recent months. While raising cattle, hay and crops are each impacted by the weather, the poultry business is somewhat insulated, but not completely, from drastic swings in temperature and abundant rains or long dry spells. “In the chicken business, with the cold weather, you have to burn more propane and when it’s hot in the summer time you have to run cool cells,” he said. “You have to be aware that more bad things can happen with chickens in hot weather rather than when it’s cold.” In any kind of farming or ranching, operators have to be aware of the weather, he said. “You’re always trying to look ahead to see what the predictions are so you can prepare for them,” Lawson said. “The chicken business and cattle business kind of go hand-in-hand with each other,” Lawson said. For instance, the chicken litter from the poultry operation is used to fertilize the pastures where the cattle graze. Yet another important part of the success of Lawson Ranch has been good neighbors, he said. Being located in a rural area off the main highway, that aspect of being able to rely on neighbors has been vital, he says. If one has an issue they need help with, they know they can rely on one another, John Paul says. Changing with the times Since growing up in the 1950s and 1960s in the farming environment, the couple says they have seen a lot of changes. Among those areas of change has been in the way livestock is fed. “There’s a lot more nutrition in what we feed today,” John Paul says. “The genetics in cattle raising is tremendously better now and that results in more tender, juicy cuts of meat.” With his own operations, John Paul said he has tightened up the calving program and joins forces with a neighbor to sell cattle by the truckload. “You get a better prices when you sell by the 18-wheeler load,” he says. Dixie says on the poultry side of operations there have also been a lot of changes. “Things are so different these days, the broiler Dixie and John Paul Lawson said despite challenges with fluctuating markets, unpredictable weather and other issues, the ranching and farming life has been a good one for them and their family. AT A GLANCE WHAT: Lawson Ranch WHO: Owned and Operated by John Paul and Dixie Lawson WHERE: 2926 CR 3373 Joaquin, TX 75954 PHONE: (936) 269-3404 Business MATTERS | 2020 Spring Edition 31