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Tag: Lebanon

Kaden and Emily Roush, LaDow’s Market

Today let’s go to the center of the country to visit an innovative family which has centered its business on high quality, locally produced fresh food, including their own specialty pork.

Storefront, Ladow's Market, Lebanon, Kansas
Ladow’s Market (Lebanon, Kan.)

Last week we met Kaden and Emily Roush, the owners of R Family Farms near Lebanon — the geographic center of the contiguous United States. The Roushes operate a niche hog production system involving Berkshire pigs. What is the history of Berkshire hogs?

According to legend, 300 years ago Oliver Cromwell’s army was encamped in winter quarters at Reading, the county seat of the shire of Berks in England. They discovered the hogs there to be larger than any swine of the time and to produce ham and bacon of remarkable quality. That was the beginning of the Berkshire breed.

For years, the royal family kept a large herd of Berkshires at Windsor Castle due to the excellent carcass quality of the hogs. In 1823, the first Berkshires were imported to the U.S. In 1875 the American Berkshire Association was created, becoming the first swine registry to be established in the world.

In modern times, Kaden took note of the carcass quality of these hogs. For example, in a summary of tests conducted over a 20-year span at the National Barrow Show in Austin, Minnesota, Berkshire pigs scored highest of all major American pure breeds in sensory quality.

R Family Farms began raising Berkshire hogs. The business now specializes in private label production and direct online marketing of their Berkshire pork. R Family Farms is a member of the From the Land of Kansas program of the Kansas Department of Agriculture.

Continue reading “Kaden and Emily Roush, LaDow’s Market”

Kaden and Emily Roush, R Family Farms

“Kon’nichiwa.”

That is hello in Japanese. Today, a shipment from the United States is arriving in Japan. It’s some samples of specialty, high quality pork produced by a family halfway around the globe in rural Kansas.

Man and woman looking at camera and smiling
Kaden and Emily Roush

Kaden and Emily Roush are the owners of R Family Farms and a local grocery store in Lebanon, Kan. Kaden grew up in Lebanon on a crop and livestock farm. Five generations of his family have been involved in agriculture.

Hog production was a major part of the Roush family operation until the hog market crash of the 1990s. As described by the family’s website: “However, out of the ashes sprang an opportunity for an energetic little boy, a few sows, and a 4-H project.”

Young Kaden Roush was that little boy.

Roush enrolled in the swine project in 4-H, raised pigs and showed them successfully at the county fair. Soon he was selling extra pigs to fellow 4-H members.

In the process, Roush developed a knack for livestock evaluation. He would develop and use those skills on the livestock judging teams at Allen Community College in Iola and then Kansas State University. The national judging team tours gave Roush the opportunity to observe diversity in agriculture and potential opportunities for marketing pork.

Continue reading “Kaden and Emily Roush, R Family Farms”

Kansas Wheat and K-State Grain Science flour distribution

By Ron Wilson, director of the Huck Boyd National Institute for Rural Development at Kansas State University.

Flour power! No, I’m not having a flashback to the 1960s. I’m referring to the kind of flour that comes from wheat and is used for baking bread.

When the pandemic hit in Spring 2020, and people were stuck at home, such flour was less available in stores. Then Kansas Wheat and the K-State Department of Grain Science and Industry mobilized to provide a free flour distribution to Kansas families. Such generosity led to these entities being recognized as Ag Heroes by the Kansas Department of Agriculture during the 2020 Ag Growth Summit.

Wheat flour distribution at K-State
Wheat flour distribution at K-State

Justin Gilpin is the chief executive officer of Kansas Wheat. Gordon Smith is head of K-State’s Grain Science and Industry Department. That department includes several facilities, including the Hal Ross Flour Mill. These entities came together to provide this flour distribution in June 2020.

Kansas Wheat is the product of a cooperative agreement between two organizations:  The Kansas Wheat Commission and the Kansas Association of Wheat Growers. Continue reading “Kansas Wheat and K-State Grain Science flour distribution”