became a prominent feature in the poultry industry, it
became hard for folks like them to make their operations
feasible.”
Back in the 1950s, roosters cost over $1 each,
Marilyn notes.
Their hog operation also came from modest
beginnings. Neighbor Bill Held partnered with the
Reckamps. Yorkshire gilts were kept at the Reckamp
farm because it was “clean ground,” meaning hogs had
never before been on the land.
The partnership eventually dissolved, but the
Reckamps continued in their own hog venture.
In its early years, the Wright City farm raised cattle,
hogs and crops. Today, the 185-acre spread includes
natural pork, vegetables, honey and free-range eggs, as
well as corn and soybeans. Gene and Marilyn’s youngest
son Dave and wife Marylin manage the operation
together with only limited help from other family
members.
As the hog market tumbled, Marylin remembers
telling Dave, “Why don’t we do what they do in
Scotland?”
And in her thick British dialect, she recounts how
Scottish farmers add value to their products by selling
direct to the public. “Make more money,” she says.
“We started (value-added) 14 years ago,” Marylin
explains. “Small in the beginning. Now it’s huge.”
VALUE-ADDED EVERYTHING
From its natural pork to vegetables to eggs, honey and
row crops diversity is key for the Reckamp operation.
And, it’s diversification that has helped the family
manage the operation on the cusp of urbanization.
“It’s helped us put our name out there,” Dave says.
“When we first started, we weren’t really very busy
here at the farm,” Marylin says. “Marilyn took me to
the farmer’s market in Warrenton. We sold turnips and
rhubarb and made $13.”
After that, Marylin would load up what vegetables
were on hand and take them to the farmers markets.
“We started making more and more money,” she says.
“I thought ‘this is a good deal.’”
More farmers markets followed since that meager
$13 beginning. One opened in nearby Wright City, and
for about 10 years, the Reckamps participated in a huge