added security
Being efficient is a constant for Wayne Jeans. The Richards, Mo., farmer
grows corn, soybeans and wheat in addition to raising nursery pigs for
Murphy Brown. He also manages an irrigation business.
And, tracking inputs with precision farming tools helps him keep
his thumb on his operation’s bottom line.
“We are constantly trying to be more efficient at what we do,” Jeans
explains.
From inputs to labor, Jeans says precision farming not only saves on
his operation’s bottom line, but also speeds up the training process when
he brings a new employee into the business. “I can train somebody to run
a piece of equipment quicker with precision (tools),” he says.
Knowing which areas of a field are the most and least productive
is more reliable when implementing precision farming techniques such
as grid sampling and variable rate fertilizer, Jeans says. Inputs are then
applied accordingly. Jeans began adding the technology to his operation
about 15 years ago, and by 2010 everything was equipped with auto
steer.
“All of our inputs are tracked through GreenStar™” Jeans says of the
precision technology. “The price of grid sampling and variable rate has
made precision farming with GreenStar more cost effective for us.”
When Jeans learned that his yields could be tracked through the technology and reported using crop insurance with FCS Financial,
he was intrigued.
Now, working with FCS Financial for his crop insurance needs is added security for his operation. “In 2012, we had 60 bushel
corn,” Jeans recalls. “I’ve never seen that in my lifetime. We have to have some sort of security blanket to protect us on those things just
because of the amount of dollars we are dealing with.”
Jeans was raised in Vernon County and always wanted to farm. After college, he and wife Pauline both worked for
Murphy Brown. They later built their own hog confinement facility to raise pigs for Murphy. The irrigation business
was added later and today helps diversify the operation.
“In this area, we were fortunate,” Jeans says. “We grew (our operation) rapidly because of older farmers who retired. We were able
to take over their operations. It’s good to work with those folks because they care about the farm.”
Today, Jeans’ son Chase works in the operation full time as does four additional employees.
“We sell a lot of corn to Murphy’s to provide for the hogs around here,” Jeans says. “It’s a good stable market for us. The irrigation
business has introduced us to people and allowed us to interact with some folks that we would have never thought of otherwise.”
While competitive rates first brought Jeans to FCS Financial, today it’s that in addition to the services offered that help maintain
the relationship.
“Being able to sit down with someone who understands agriculture and looks at numbers the same way we do is very valuable to
us,” Jeans says.
Contact an FCS Financial Crop Insurance team member today to learn more about our risk management
products. Remember March 15 is the last day to sign up for spring crop insurance and to make any
changes to existing coverage. Call 1-800-444-3276, visit myfcsfinancial.com or stop by an FCS Financial
office, and let us put our experience to work for you.
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