Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig presented the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award to the Eason family of Greene County April 5 during a ceremony at their family farm near Scranton.
Designated in 2021 as a Heritage Farm, which means it’s been in the same family for 150 years, Eason Feedlot is a seventh-generation family farm owned and operated by the Eason family. Today, the family farm includes the fourth generation Bob and Peg Eason and the fifth generation, which includes their children Curt and his wife Angela, and Linda and her husband Dave Schroeder. Dave and Linda’s sons, Ryan and his wife Lexi Schroeder, and Brent and his wife Amanda Schroeder, are the sixth generation. The seventh generation, the children of Ryan and Lexi and Brent and Amanda, also help on the farm.
“The Eason family is deeply rooted in Scranton and Greene County, and they truly care about their neighbors and the community they call home,” said Secretary Naig. “They take great pride in caring for their land and livestock and are embedded in the fabric of their community – continually looking for ways to serve others. I am pleased to present the Eason Family with the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor and I thank them for being a great example of the kind of multi-generational farm families that make Iowa so special.”
The family’s feedlot, which includes both open feedlots and bedded barns, has a capacity of 3,000 head of cattle. The family maintains their Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) certifications and utilizes Performance Beef software to monitor feed efficiency and rate-of-gain. Through partnerships with Iowa State University faculty and students, they participate in research projects to better the industry.
The Easons also raise corn, soybeans and hay on approximately 1,200 acres. They demonstrate their care for natural resources by planting rye as a cover crop. The cover crops, which they started using about a decade ago, help to keep nutrients and soil in place, both of which are important for protecting water quality. They utilize a manure management plan and all their crop acres are fertilized using cattle manure. As a result, they save money by avoiding the need to buy commercial fertilizer.
The family is heavily involved in their community as well as agricultural groups and associations. The family holds memberships in the Iowa Corn Growers Association, Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, Greene County Cattlemen, Greene County Farm Bureau and the Iowa Farm Bureau Federation.
Bob was the Greene County Fair beef superintendent for 20 years and Peg was on the Greene County Medical Center board for 21 years. Curt and Angela are active within the Scranton United Methodist Church, where Angela serves as a youth pastor. Their church has spearheaded a community mission called Sweet Treats, which offers food, clothing and other necessities to people in Scranton every Wednesday. Curt and Angela have purchased uniforms for various area sports teams and contribute money to the Greene County Fair to use for auction premiums. They also support 4-H members and their clubs as well as FFA students and chapters in many ways. Ryan is on the Greene County Cattlemen’s board and coaches little league baseball. Brent is the Greene County Farm Bureau president, volunteers as a 4-H leader, and serves on the Greene County Fair board.
The Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award is made possible through a partnership with the Coalition to Support Iowa’s Farmers (CSIF), The Big Show on WHO Radio and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Now in its 20th year, this award recognizes Iowa livestock farmers who take pride in caring for the environment and their livestock while also being good neighbors. It is named in memory of Gary Wergin, a long-time WHO Radio farm broadcaster who helped create the award.
