October 2024 - Journal F e - Flipbook - Page 16
Customers
WEBER FARMS:
HONORING TRADITION
WHILE Embracing Growth
For Justin Weber and his family, farming is more
than just a business—it’s been a way of life for
generations. “I’m a 昀椀fth-generation farmer and the
fourth-generation on this land here in Jesup,” Justin
explains. His great-great-grandfather farmed near
Monticello, Iowa, but in the 1920s, the family moved
to their current location. Justin’s father, Irv, remembers
milking about 65 cows as a boy, but when milk prices
dropped, the family had to pivot. “They got out of
dairy and started farrowing pigs, but struggled with
Transmissible Gastroenteritis (TGE),” Justin recalls. By
1975, the family had found their niche—buying and
raising feeder pigs.
昀椀nishing about 3,000 pigs a year, and it was kind of
like, what are we doing here?” That’s when Justin
and Irv bought shares in Thunder Ridge, a sow farm
in South Dakota that is managed by PIPESTONE on
behalf of farmer-owners. In 2019, they expanded
further, investing in Timberwolf, a similar sow farm in
Wisconsin.
From a young age, Justin was immersed in farm life,
tagging along with his dad to sale barns—experiences
that sparked his love for farming. In 1996, Irv built the
family’s 昀椀rst 昀椀nishing barn, and another was added in
2001, setting the foundation for pig production. By
2015, however, Justin realized they needed to make
a decision: either grow or get out. “We were only
Beyond the collaboration, the partnership with
PIPESTONE provides 昀椀nancial and operational security.
“Having multiple sow farms means if there’s a disease
outbreak in one, we still have healthy pigs from
another,” Justin explains. “It’s a big improvement from
the challenges Dad faced growing up.”
Justin and Nicole Weber, along with
their kids, Peyton, Jada, and Brady;
farm with Justin’s parents,
Irv and Jane Weber near Jesup, Iowa.
16 | PIPESTONE JOURNAL
Investing in sow farms has allowed Justin to connect
with like-minded farmers. “We often bounce ideas off
each other,” he shares. “I’m in a group text with other
farmers about the Timberwolf pigs, and it’s interesting
to see what works for everyone. The exchange of ideas
is invaluable.”
