An Interview With Sean Freedman
Compassion. There’s no way to be a great farmer if your heart isn’t in it. Plain and simple, our family’s livelihood is based on the sole principle that caring for our animals is exactly what we were meant to do. The early mornings, the long nights and everything in between is not possible without care and compassion for our family, workers and the cows.
Modern farming is actually very different from common conceptions. Farming today is dramatically different from the farming done a few decades ago. In this interview series called The Future Of Modern American Farming, we are exploring the modern technological changes that American farms have been making. We are also exploring how farmers are adjusting to the supply chain challenges, the challenges of climate change, and the challenges of sustainable farming.
As a part of this series, we had the pleasure of interviewing Jill and Brian Houin of Homestead Dairy in Plymouth, Indiana.
Jill Houin was not raised on a farm, but her passion for dairy ignited once she met her now-husband, Brian and joined his family’s business, Homestead Farms, a fourth-generation, 4,800-cow operation in Marshall County, Indiana. The farm partners with the University of Notre Dame to process the University’s waste through their anaerobic digester creating enough power for nearly 1,000 homes. She manages the care of the calves and the dairy’s website, giving live virtual tours to viewers around the world.
Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
My husband Brian Houin was born and raised on his family farm in Plymouth, Indiana. He graduated from Purdue in 2003 with a degree in Meteorology and a minor in Spanish. Even though he doesn’t practice forecasting the weather, it gave him a passion for analyzing data. Faced with the challenge of staying sustainable in the dairy industry, the Homestead Dairy family decided to build automated calf feeders, a new robotic facility, and a methane digester to take advantage of new technologies and improve efficiencies.
In 2004 Brian and I got married. I was born in New Jersey and had never been on a farm. Learning to adapt to the country lifestyle, I retired from teaching in 2016 and became the calf manager at the family farm. Now I manage the calves, do all the social media, manage the website, and give all of the tours. Having no background in agriculture or dairy, I have a passion for teaching consumers about the dairy industry and the way farmers care for their animals and for the environment.
Homestead Dairy is a 4th generation farm that milks 4800 cows on 3 different sites. The 3 sites all have different parlors. The main farm milks 1800 cows on a double 25 parallel parlor, Legacy milks 700 cows on a double 12 parallel and the robotic facility milks cows with robots. The two parlors are milking the cows 3 times a day. At the robotic facility, the cows are free to choose how many times they come to get milked, it could be 2 times a day and it could be 4 or 5 times a day. It is up to the individual cow.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began this fascinating career?
Learning and implementing how to utilize manure in so many different ways that benefit the community, the cows, and the environment was the most fascinating thing about our dairy farm. We utilize the manure to make electricity, fertilize the fields to grow food for the cows, sanitize the manure to use as bedding and we are looking towards using it in different ways in the future.
You are a successful leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?
Passionate, family oriented, and forward thinking are the traits that we believe we focus on to help continue to help our family farm be progressive and find new ways to benefit all 3 areas we are passionate about: community, cows, and environment. One way we have done this is when we, as a family, worked together to put in the anaerobic digester. We knew it was best to find ways to utilize the manure in a way that would benefit so many people to get green energy and make enough electricity for 1000 houses an hour in our town. Not only is it making use of the manure, we work with other companies that have biodegradable waste and put it in the digester instead of the landfill and make more electricity.
Can you please give us your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share how that was relevant to you in your life?
“WE, THE UNWILLING, LED BY THE UNQUALIFIED, HAVE BEEN DOING THE UNBELIEVABLE FOR SO LONG, WITH SO LITTLE, WE NOW ATTEMPT THE IMPOSSIBLE WITH NOTHING…” Floyd Houin found this quote and lived by it. Floyd was Brian’s father who passed away in 2021. The family still is working hard to accomplish the impossible daily knowing that being progressive and attempting new ways to care for the cows and the land might seem crazy to some but it will benefit future generations to come.
Can you share something about your work that makes you most proud? Is there a particular story or incident that you found most uplifting?
We pride ourselves on the care we take of the animals to guide them into producing wholesome milk for so many people. We built a robotic dairy in 2017 and the barn was based on cow comfort. The cows choose when they get milked and get a snack while they are getting milked. They have backscratchers to get massages. They sleep on memory foam mattresses. We have an ally scraper that allows for the manure to be cleaned automatically throughout the day. This place was built with the cow in mind and we are seeing the benefits by producing more milk.
Ok super. Let’s now shift to the main part of our discussion about Modern Farming. It seems that most industries have all converted to tech and modernized their old ways. Can you share with our readers a few of the ways that modern farming has modernized? Can you share how tech has improved your business model?
New dairy farm technologies provide the capability for manure and liquid waste to be converted into valuable products, such as renewable fertilizers and renewable energy sources. In addition, there are technologies that can help soil sequestration capture valuable nutrients, reducing emissions and creating both carbon and water credits. Markets for these new products and ecosystem credits must be developed for the economic viability to be realized and for these environmental solutions to be self-sustained.
On our farm we have the manure digester to produce green electricity for 1000 houses an hour in our local town. We utilize wear technology to monitor the steps of the cows and if their steps deviate, the 14 veterinarians get a report to check on that animal to make sure she is feeling well. Our robotic dairy is set up to recycle water 4 times before we use it to water the crops in the fields. We utilize auto feeders for the calves so that they can eat whenever they want to and this allows for increased growth and healthier calves that will grow into strong milk cows. Our farm is constantly finding new and progressive ways to use technology to help both our own business model but also help reuse our resources to be more sustainable.
Do you think modernization for farming is a slower process than for other industries? Can you explain what you mean?
We cannot speak for other industries but family farms constantly strive to improve the care of the animals, the care of the land, and the care for the family. It may surprise you to know that due to progressive sustainable farming and production practices, the carbon footprint of producing a gallon of milk shrunk by 19% between 2007 and 2017, requiring 30% less water and 21% less land — and the U.S. dairy industry’s greenhouse gas footprint is just 2% of the nation’s total.
With all the different technologies that are presented to family farms, not all will be implemented but we, as dairy farmers, will find new and amazing ways to utilize the technology that will benefit the cows, the land and the environment.
There is much more to be done, and the dairy industry is committed to making even more progress.
Are there farms resisting the “tech bandwagon”? Why do you think this is so?
Dairy farmers have always embraced the use of technology in so many facets of their farming, whether related to their crops or the caring, feeding and milking of their cows.
However, the practices and technologies needed to reach the industry’s goals largely exist, but require further development, significant operational changes and advanced technical assistance. One of the greatest barriers to adoption is the significant investment required by farmers.
One way we are accelerating U.S. dairy’s efforts to reach these ambitious targets is through the Net Zero Initiative, which uses foundational research, on-farm pilots and the development of new product and ecosystem market opportunities to break down barriers and make cutting-edge feed production, cow care, energy efficiency and manure management practices accessible and economically viable for farms of all sizes, in all geographies.
On our farm we have fully embraced technology not only to be more efficient but to care for the cows in the best way possible. We are able to have a larger amount of cows but care for each one individually by using technology to monitor their health and growth.
The idea of farming has a very romantic and idyllic character to it, especially to some people living in a busy cosmopolitan context. Do you think now would be a good time for younger people with no farming history to get involved in the farming industry? Can you explain what you mean?
Yes, because a dairy farm is a complex, diverse operation, there are so many skills and expertise needed on the farm, beyond what consumers would think is ‘traditional farming.’ Today’s farmers are often second or third generation family members who left the farm, got degrees in agriculture, computer engineering, mechanical engineering, environmental science, animal science, and more, and brought their knowledge back to the farm. So, people exploring those disciplines would be a great fit for dairy farms.
Where should a young person start if they would like to “get into” farming?
A young person that is interested in getting into farming needs to talk to farmers and really understand that it is a passion and not just a job. Loving what you are doing on the farm and allowing time to understand how the animals live best by implementing the technology to aid in the care of each individual animal.
How does inflation affect farms? What steps have you taken to keep costs down?
Inflation has affected all businesses including farming. Farmers understand that times are hard right now and as a family we have had to diversify within our family business. Continuing to be progressive as a family, we have been continuing to look for different revenue streams that will not only make us sustainable as a family business but also allow us to care for the animals to our high standards. One specific thing that has helped us as a family was the foresight of utilizing the manure in ways that will both benefit the sustainability of the planet and the consistency of continuing to sustain our family business to our high standards.
There are of course different revenue streams that can be generated from a farm. What are your current avenues of profiting from your farm? What would you suggest to other farm owners to add to expand their revenue streams?
Homestead Dairy is both a milk business and an energy business. The milk we produce has historically been our main revenue stream but the energy produced by our methane digester is another source of revenue. We sell that energy to a local power company who uses it to power 1000 homes in our area.
We also offer tours so people can see for themselves what a modern farm looks like.
Every farm is unique so what works at Homestead Dairy might not work on another farm somewhere else, but every farm looks for ways to diversify our businesses so we can continue doing this labor of love.
Here is the main question of our interview. Can you please share your “5 Things That Need To Create A Successful Career In the Modern Farming Industry”? If you can, please share a story or example for each.
The best way for us to look at this is what we wish we could tell ourselves when we were first starting out. Brian’s family had a successful farm established, but in the years since, with technology and innovation continuously evolving,, this is what we would want our younger selves to know:
- Flexibility in growth. Not every plan will pan out but you must be willing and able to adapt to what makes the most sense for the farm.
- Education is still key. After all the classes have been attended, there’s nothing like the education you will acquire on a farm. Learning from those in the community and those in the farming field will provide values and lessons that can’t be traditionally taught yet are necessary for success.
- Compassion. There’s no way to be a great farmer if your heart isn’t in it. Plain and simple, our family’s livelihood is based on the sole principle that caring for our animals is exactly what we were meant to do. The early mornings, the long nights and everything in between is not possible without care and compassion for our family, workers and the cows.
- Relationships with community members. It is through our modern farming practices that we have built relationships with colleges, universities, thought leaders and even residents that rely on our farm for electricity. Without them, we would be here and able to do such innovative things on our farm. Our town has driven us to be better and we are proud that we can give back to the community every day.
- Keep saying yes. Whether it’s for a tour, a phone call, an interview, a virtual farm tour, etc, it will challenge you to do better but it will always continue growing a farming practice where your best is never good enough. You will never settle when you have kids asking why you feel calves one way, followed by university professionals asking to study one of your cows for their research class. We’re constantly evolving and it’s through the “yes” response that we receive feedback and ideas.
Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this, especially if we tag them. 🙂
I would want to sit down with all the Houins past and present who have had a hand in keeping our farm running for four generations. Their dedication to this farm is paving the way for us to keep this farm in the family for the next four generations, and hopefully many more. Innovations like the ones at Homestead don’t happen overnight or without taking risks along the way.
We look up to them because they set in motion a legacy we’re honored to continue.
How can our readers further follow your work online?
The best resources to stay current on what the dairy industry is doing is to follow the Innovation Center for U.S. Dairy on LinkedIn, and peruse usdairy.com, where you can find robust information on the industry’s sustainability goals, successes and progress, as well as the science behind the superior nutrition of dairy, recipes and useful tips, and of course, farmer stories.
Our family has a website www.homesteaddairy.com , a YouTube Channel of Homestead Dairy https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC4RR5uUvhKlrKLBxa6eFJPw , and a facebook page https://www.facebook.com/HomesteadDairy
This was very meaningful, thank you so much, and we wish you only continued success.
Jill Houin Of Homestead Dairy On The Future Of Modern American Farming was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.