Farming isn’t new to either John or Misty Schmitz, having both grown up on farms in the Ozarks.
John had finally got to a point in his adult life that he was ready to have a few head of cattle of his own and started looking in September of 2010. A neighbor’s brother was selling out a part of his Beefmaster herd, John was looking and the timing was perfect.
John couldn’t be happier with the Beefmaster breed. They weather extremely well. They were bred for the heat and extreme climates. John and Misty have had no calving issues and claim the Beefmasters to be relatively maintenance free. One look at their herd and you can see that they stand out. Their stout muscular frames belie the fact that they have some of the best feed conversion rates on grass and feed in the industry. Making them not only one of the heartiest breeds to raise, but one of the most cost efficient as well. They also return high yield carcass weights. John’s last butchered calf live weight was 974 pounds and carcass weight was 698 pounds. That’s a decent rate of retention at 72 percent.
John and Misty blended their two families in January of this year. Together their brood includes: Kylah, 9, Hailey, 9, and Tyler, 7. They currently have 13 head of cattle, a handful of chickens, a dog and a cat. They live on the edge of north Springfield almost into Willard, Mo. John works by day for the City of Springfield at the Airport Building Maintenance. Misty works in the health field currently and will be continuing her education in Human Services Field at Evangel.
Their long term plans are to continue to grow their herd through breeding, trading and buying.
What John initially purchased as a side income has quickly become a way of life for the Schmitz family. The kids enjoy getting into the farming role and have their chores and responsibilities like all other farm kids do. Misty said the kids had been pretty much city slickers up until the cows came but now don’t mind getting their boots on and getting dirty. Misty sees the farming experience as an open door for her and John as parents to teach them hard work, caring for others, responsibility and uses the farming as educational opportunities.
The Schmitz family doesn’t think they know it all by a long shot and they want to keep it that way. The learning curve has been the best part of the farming life. They want to continue to grow their farm and become as self reliant as possible. They would also like to help educate their community of the quality of farm fresh meats. Misty feels that life has become more about convenience and corporate and they would like to supply local and quality meats for their neighbors to enjoy.
