The Rural Voice, 1996-11, Page 22boundary in McKillop, east of Walton, featured in an
article in a October 1994 issue of The Rural Voice.
It's been manageable growth, Miriam says. The new
facilities in one expansion improve efficiency to help pay
for the next expansion.
The Terpstras want to have a land base of 250-300 acres
with each new barn so that does slow down the rate of
growth, Joe says. "It holds you back from expanding as fast
as a loop (a co-operative association of farmers joined in a
three -site operation)."
"But you don't have to have board meetings," Miriam
jokes.
The expansion means Acre T. also has 2400 acres of
workable land for cropping. The production of nearly all
that land goes into feed for the animals, Joe says. they have
their own feed plant to create the feed.
Despite the size of the operation, the Terpstras don't
produce under contract. For the past four years
they've sold their entire market production to U.S.
packers, currently nearly all of it to Thorn Apple
Valley in Detroit. They sell on a cash -market basis which,
in the long run, yields the highest returns. "You have to
learn to live with risk," Joe says, and be ready to deal with
the ups and downs of the market. Still, he says he has no
problems sleeping at night, though Miriam adds it may be
because he works so hard. (It takes a lot of hours to make
things happen, Joe says. You have to like what you're
doing to put up with the work involved.)
It takes 160-165 days for Acre T. to take a pig to the
weight preferred by U.S. packers. They aim for 890 to 900
grams of gain per day averaged over that period.
18 THE RURAL VOICE
Acre T. Farms has opened two new nursery barns, each
capable of holding 4,800 weaner pigs.
Working closely with packers to provide the kind of
product they need has benefitted both, Joe says. "It has
benefited both of us because we are able to provide
consistency of product. What the packers want is what the
world, even the Japanese, want," Joe says.
"Since 1991 we've concentrated on having a high -yield,
fast-growing animal. Now we're being rewarded."
They've had the assistance of a Manitoba geneticist in
designing that kind of animal. He flies in every two months
and spends a week at the farm, then is in contact by fax and
telephone with advice on matings in the 600 sow nucleus
herd (expanding soon to 800).
The geneticist is an example of Joe's philosophy that "if
we don't have the answer, there are people out there who
can help us". There are also people who can help with
nutrition or marketing. "You have to keep'in touch with all
these things to be successful," Joe says.0
Visitors (left) tour one of eight rooms in the nursery, each
holding up to 600 pigs in 12 pens. Above, hundreds toured
the new barn at an October 5 open house.