“Sick animals cost you a lot of money so keeping them healthy is the full goal.”

Join us in this informative episode of Farming on Purpose and learn more about KSX Performance with Kaitlyn Keller. Taking us behind the scenes of her business, Kaitlyn shares about her love for animals, helping people, and how that translates into her business and how she operates. Kaitlyn dives into her products and explains some of the benefits of them. Listen in as we delve into the world of animal supplements and caring for livestock.

“I think it’s all just a balancing act and just trying to put a pencil to it. We do a lot of penciling because we’re new at this, we’re figuring it out. So what works for our neighbor may not work for us because they’re in a different situation than we are and that’s ok.”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Jess Trask of Perigo Hay and Cattle. Jess shared about her experience on her family’s hay farm and why they decided to get involved in the cattle industry. Not having a background in cattle, Jess had quite the learning curve to figuring out how to manage their cattle operation. Jess also talked about the importance in learning and always being open to learn new things and adapt. Getting stuck in traditions or how things are always done can be dangerous for a farm or ranch’s success. Jess dropped an exclusive look into a new project they have in the works!

“I had to learn everything the hard way. I was going to the library all the time when I had time to do that. I’m listening to podcasts all the time. I’m trying to network with people like you and find people on social media and compare and just join all these groups where you can ask questions. That’s really how you get through it; you’ve got to find people who are willing to share their knowledge with you and that’ll save you some of the heartache.” 

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Tiffany Baxter, owner of Backyard Butchery.  Tiffany talked about how she started her fully mobile butcher shop and some of the obstacles she had to overcome. Tiffany also shared what her farm operation looks like and her plans to expand the farm to hold more animals. Tiffany was very open about sharing what has and hasn’t worked for her, obstacles with Backyard Butchery as well as her own farm operation.   

“If we could come together, our community is not going to have to worry about what happens on the coast to not get us the food we need to sustain ourselves. Why do we have to look so far away for food when it’s right here in our backyard?”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of chatting with Laurie Bruce, co-owner of Bruce's Bullseye Farms. Laurie and her husband are first-generation farmers and are working on expanding their farming operation. One way they are expanding is with Laurie’s commercial kitchen. Laurie shared how it started with her making sand plum jam and jelly for friends and family and grew to a commercial kitchen where Laurie makes all kinds of farm-to-table products. Laurie also talked about the value of being able to provide for yourself and your family with products from their farm, especially when remembering the food supply issues during COVID and the current prices of food.

“We really need more people outside of the community advocating, but we also need more people to say, ‘ Hey, your job is stressful. I could not do it. I could never do what you do, but I support you.’”

In this episode, I had the pleasure of sitting down with Meg West. Even though Meg did not grow up in the agriculture industry, it is her passion to advocate for those in agriculture. Meg explains why she loves the western lifestyle and why it is important for her to advocate for mental health resources and accessibility for people in the ag community. Meg started a campaign on social media using #AgLetsTalk to start the conversation about mental health and to help break the stigma that is associated with mental health.

“I would say trajectory is a keyword. When you pull back a slingshot or a bow and point it somewhere, it’s going to go wherever you point it. Where you’re aiming is where you’re going.”

In this episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with Ashley Jackson. You might know Ashley as The Boot Babe on Instagram or TikTok. Ashley started The Boot Babe to be more inclusive for all types of women to share the experience of wearing cowboy boots. Ashley also shared how important it is to be involved in your community especially if you want to see change and the importance of being a leader.

This week’s guest, John Sachse, is a Kansas-based mindset coach helping people to discover their full potential through fitness. Fitness is both mental and physical, and John talks us through how establishing a routine can help you make intentional choices for personal growth.

The first steps in creating a growth mindset for yourself are: establishing routines, visualizing goals, and reverse engineering your life. John is passionate about using routines and small goals to help you reach your overarching goal to reach your “why”.

In addition to working as a mindset coach, John is a husband, father, rancher, and Army National Guard officer.

Helping farm families communicate and resolve conflict

If there is one thing Elaine Froese is passionate about, it’s that conflict is not a bad thing. This week’s guest, Elaine Froese, is Canada’s Farm Whisperer. She spends her time coaching farm families through growth and transition, with an emphasis on understanding.

Elaine grew up as a farm kid, and fell in love with and married a seed farmer over 40 years ago. Together, she and her husband have had their fair share of growth and change on the farm. In this episode, she shared with us her knowledge on how to resolve and overcome challenges, not avoid them.

About our guest:

Elaine Froese, Canada's Farm Whisperer, is helping farm families in transition find harmony through understanding. Elaine farms a 5,000-acre seed farm in SW Manitoba Canada with her husband, son and daughter in-law, and 3 adorable grandchildren. She's on a mission to get clarity of expectations and certainty of timelines for better communication.

You can connect with Elaine on all social media @farmfamilycoach, or through her upcoming speaking events.

The beef industry is a complex and unknown process for most. On our first episode, guest Cassidy Johnston, breaks down the complexities of ranching beef cattle and how those ranchers are also environmental stewards.

At its core, ranching is a family task. Cassidy learned this first-hand as a first-generation rancher. She and her husband, and their three sons, now operate a cattle ranch in Colorado. Cassidy’s unique journey to ranching has given her the insight to communicate with the average consumer about how and where their food was produced.