ROYER FARM FRESH BEEF, LAMB & PORK
Natural, Tender, Flavorful Meats from Our Family to Yours
August 10th, 2011 Newsletter #79
Internship Opportunity at Royer Farm Fresh
Description
Royer Farm Fresh Beef, Lamb and Pork is a family-owned farm that has been over 130 years in the making. Owned by Scott and Nikki Royer, the farm sits on 125 acres just outside of Clinton, Indiana where Nikki's Great-Great-Grandfather crossed the Wabash River and settled back in 1874. At Royer Farm Fresh Beef, Lamb and Pork our mission is to raise family-farm grown meats in a healthy and natural environment. This is not a hobby for us; our farm has been in business for over a century and we are working diligently to build sustainable practices to last another 100 years and more. It is of the utmost importance to us to treat our land, our animals, our community and our customers with respect and care.
The internship position is designed to provide experience in many aspects of sustainable production and direct marketing of farm products. Work will include a great deal of animal husbandry as well as value-added production and marketing. Species raised on the farm include cattle, pigs, sheep, and chickens. The farm's products are marketed through farmers' markets, a farm store, and on-line.
Qualifications
The internship position is intended for individuals who wish to have a broad range of hands-on farm work and marketing experience. The intern will also have the opportunity to complete a project in his/her chosen area, so applicants should have a strong desire to learn.
Applicants must be physically fit, capable of completing the rigors of pasture work, and able to work in a variety of adverse weather conditions. Though previous experience with livestock is not necessary to apply, we do ask that applicants be very comfortable handling larger animals. Mostly, we encourage a willingness to learn and ability to self-direct.
Duration
Duration is negotiable. There is a minimum commitment of three months with options up to a year.
Start date
Open
Hours
5-6 days a week including Saturday and occasional Sunday hours - roughly 40-50 hours a week total
Stipend/salary/benefits
Compensation includes housing, some meals, monthly stipend, and access to the farm's resources.
Deadline
Open
Application procedure
Contact Scott and Nikki Royer at info@royerfarmfresh.com
Mother cows and calves out for a morning graze
Are you interested in the internship here at the farm? Do you know someone who might be a good candidate? Please give us an email! Why did we decide to offer an internship opportunity? Well for starters, on the farm an extra set of helping hands is always welcome. But just as important, it is a chance for us to help expose others to multiple facets of food production and marketing. Food production has become very segmented in the United States. Most farmers grow a limited number of crops or animals. After the food leaves the farm, many "middle men" like truckers, corporate buyers, distributors and grocery stores, are responsible for your food. Our farm is definitely not typical; we take the food from our fiel to your shopping bag and we are accountable every step of the way.
What would an average week be like for an intern? During the summer our weeks go something like this...
*Animal care both morning and evening. Each group of animals (pigs, laying hens, meat birds, 100% grassfed cattle, grass/grain fed cattle, mother sheep, rams and market lambs) are checked for general health and well-being. We make sure their water sources are clean and full. The animals supplemented with grain are fed. The fences are checked daily because we want to find any problems before the livestock do! On Mondays we dispense free-choice mineral to the cattle and sheep.
*Pasture/fence management. All the animals live on pasture with some groups more intensively managed than others. The 100% grassfed cattle have their 15 acre pasture allotted out to them in small parcels so they eat the grass and do not trample it. Every other day the temporary electric fence is moved so the cattle have fresh grass. When the meat chickens leave the brooder and go out onto pasture, their shelters are moved daily and once their shelters have been all across the pasture, the birds, shelters and portable fence are moved to a new section. The other groups of livestock are moved to new pastures every one or two weeks.
*Meat responsibilities. Every week the butcher shop cuts cuts thousands of pounds of meat for us and we give them explicit details on how to wrap and package the meat. To decide what needs cut and how, we inventory what sold the past week, set aside the meat reserved for volume orders and look at the animals that will be ready for butchering in the upcoming weeks. When families buy a 1/4 beef or whole hog (or other types of volume orders), there is plenty of communication back and forth so the meat is prepared to best suit the needs of each customer. I am in the butcher shop multiple times a week checking over the carcasses, looking at the cuts of meat and watching the wrapping. Scott spends several hours each week moving the animals from their various pastures into the loading areas so they can be trucked ( a whopping 2 miles for the cattle, sheep and pigs) to the butcher shop.
Going to market. All those pounds of meat are bagged and loaded into freezers every week. Plus all the other market paraphernalia like tents, tables, signs, bags, brochures and more are packed on the truck and trailer. We have it down to a routine, but it still takes most of Friday to get everything ready to go. Of course, one of our favorite parts of the week is seeing all our friends and customers at the market. It is a long day, leaving the farm at 4:30AM and finishing the day around 7PM when everything is unloaded and animal care is complete.
Taking care of the farm store. It is enjoyable having people purchase their food right at the place it was raised. In between customers at the store we try to keep up with phone and email inquiries about meat, plus all the other paperwork that goes along with running a business. We also pack the eggs, do some garden chores, work on farm equipment and take care of utility/cargo trailer customers.
Unique experiences. When you have hundreds of animals and two 7 year old boys, "adventures" are bound to happen. This summer we have set up a swimming trough for the pigs (to help them deal with the excessive heat), loaded chickens at 2AM for transport to the butcher shop (once again trying to beat the heat), pulled a screw out of the hoof of a 1,000 pound steer and exported 28 sheep to Mexico. We also had the privilege of watching one of our sons in his theatrical debut as "Prince Charming" and another son make great strides in his swimming ability.
Preparing for the future. We always need to plan for the next season and the next year. This week we are getting ready for the next "season"... sheep breeding season that is. The vet came today to check on one of the rams. He had a strange lump on his scrotum (not good at any time, but especially right before breeding). She determined it was due to a spider bite and should not impact his fertility. Scott also trimmed hooves on some of the ewes. I planted some greens in the garden for fall and winter harvest.
Education and Service. Even though we have many time-consuming responsbilities on the farm, it is important to not get in a work rut. Most every week we try to make time for some off-farm activities. Yesterday Scott had a soil & water conservation meeting and I have a school corporation board meeting later this week. We also took a trip to visit a sheep farm in Ohio. We always come back with new ideas after seeing other farms.
That is a little bit about our summer life on the farm. If you know some who wants to work hard and learn a lot about raising and marketing good food, have him/her send us an email.
The laying hens and Fatso, the rooster, say "Quit taking our picture and feed us breakfast"!
