Cattle have been a good complement to their farming operation, Charles Claflin (opposite page, center) says. Nephew Justin Hancock
(opposite page, left) and niece Kelsey Hancock (opposite page, right) care for the farm’s cattle operation. Claflin believes having
ownership in the operation is crucial to its success. The farm’s diversity and self-sufficiency is a key driver in helping the farm grow
from generation to generation.
According to FCS Financial’s Jay Sloniker, “It’s a
huge challenge to take the producer hat off and put on
the financial planner, manager hat. These guys have
done an extremely good job of doing that. Simply one
of the reasons is because of the hours they’ve put in.”
Growth within the operation has evolved out of
shear necessity, Claflin says.
While today corn comprises nearly 90 percent of
the farm’s crop make-up, it hasn’t always been that way.
His dad was never one to grow corn, and Claflin recalls
a time when the seed dealer inquired whether Tom
knew of his son’s intentions to plant the golden kernels.
“We had always planted milo,” Claflin explains.
Weed control issues and yield reduction pushed him
to make the switch. “That was about the time much
of the poultry industry changed its feed rations over to
predominately corn.”
The farm now not only markets corn to George’s
Poultry and Opal Foods, an egg busin \