Wisconsin farmers remain flexible and adapt to consumer tastes. When Bob Uphoff joined his dad on the Madison, Wisconsin, farm in 1974, he was the fourth generation to raise hogs there since 1866. But he and his dad positioned their new business partnership for the future, naming it Uphoff Ham & Bacon Farm. "We're food producers," says Bob. "It was a way to recognize the end product produced by our farm." Bob's older brother, Fred, returned to farm a few years later. By 1998, Bob and Fred were marketing about 2,000 head of hogs per year. Fred retired in 2006. Now the next generation is on deck. After graduating from University of Wisconsin's Farm and Industry Short Course in 2008, Chris, 23, joined his parents. Bob and Julia. "I knew I wanted to bepart of it," he says. Son Brian, 18, is a high school senior.
展开▼
