Nestled in the rolling hills of Fillmore County in southeast Minnesota, Johnson’s Rolling Acres is more than a business — it’s a legacy. Richard Johnson and his family mange the multi-generational farm.
“My parents moved to the farm next door here in, I’m going to say, 1965 with myself and 12 siblings,” Johnson said. “We milked 35 cows.”
Today, the team milks more than 1,200 cows each day and manages more than 3,000 acres of cropland. The family has also invested in new technology and conservation practices. They use more than four miles of hose with booster pumps, tractors with auto-steer, and injection systems for manure management.
Those investments help the family business and also take care of the land they have relied on for generations. From cover crops to proper manure storage, Johnson’s Rolling Acres follows methods that will protect nearby rivers and streams and help prevent fish kills.
“Our most recent investment is a piece of equipment to do cover crops,” Johnson said. “We’ve been doing cover crops, various methods, for 20 years, but the latest thing we bought is we have a unit that we put an air seeder on.”
Johnson’s Rolling Acres has been clean water certified by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture. The program allows farmers to take the lead in implementing conservation practices that protect the state’s water.
“It has a lot to do with the waterways and the runoff and the monitoring of the nutrient management and soil sampling,” said Johnson.
While those practices help protect the water, they can also pay off economically in the long run.
“I know we’re getting twice and much milk out of the same cow as we were when I started on this operation,” Johnson said. “The field of corn is producing twice as many bushels per acre with the same amount of rain, the same acre of dirt. So it’s seed technology, fertilizer timing, application, genetics, equipment. It’s a multitude of things that all come together and it’s fun to see that improve.”
As Johnson looks to the next generation to continue the family business, he knows that the land will not only provide for his family but protect the nearby water for everyone.
“I think that the vast majority of the people that I know in the industry feel the same way as I do.” he said. “A lot of them are trout fishermen themselves. All of our families live here, and if there’s things that are getting into the waters that are going to kill the fish, how can they possibly be good for you and I and be good for my grandchildren?”