Hometown: Harrison, Ark., and Elkins, Ark.
Family: Parents Alma and Garry Carlton; sister Kortney; and boyfriend Jeremy Eiland
In Town: Andi Carlton is the manager of Farmers Cooperative in Elkins, Ark.
She has been at the cooperative for seven years and is a graduate of the University of Arkansas.
In the Country: Andi has a 120-acre farm near Elkins, where she raises Brahman and Brahman-cross cattle.
“We have about 25 head right now,” she said of the cattle herd. “Growing up, we had Charolais, but I just love the look of the Brahman. We bought a bull that was dog-gentle, so I just fell in love with them and just dove in.”
Andi, and her boyfriend Jeremy Eiland, focus on the development of replacement heifers.
“We retain our own females and on average, sell about 10 a year,” Andi said, adding that they utilize Brahman bulls in their breeding program.
They made the transition to the Brahman-influenced herd three years ago.
Any bull calves born to the herd are steered and sold through Fort Smith Stockyards.
In addition to the cattle operation, Andi has a small farmers market garden.
“I am very homesteader-ish at heart,” Andi said. “At first, we just started growing enough to can and eat throughout the year. The last few years, it has grown, and this year was the first year we were at the Elkins Farmers Market.”
Andi and Jeremy offered tomatoes, peppers, squash, zucchini, okra and cucumbers.
“We have a small greenhouse that we are putting together this fall, and I did get an Arkansas Grown Grant from the Walton Family Foundation and the state of Arkansas that helped get some more farming implements and things like that to help with the garden next year.”
For the next growing season, they plan to utilize about half an acre.
Living on a farm, for Andi, is almost like therapy.
“No matter what, when I get home and go to the garden or the cattle, it’s peaceful and therapeutic,” she explained.
Future Plans: “We want to be able to sell some quality replacement heifers to people in the area, and just grow in our farmers market area, maybe even doing two or three markets in the future.”
