Organic Choice LLC, Next Generation Dairy: Village Edge Farms

During a fifteen-year period of the 1930's & 40's, Greg and Dennis's grandfather, father and uncles, operated a bottled milk dairy on the farm. They sold bottled milk to the CCC camps as well as the communities of Nelson and Pepin. The bottling business was later sold to Tri-City Dairy. Greg and Dennis's parents, Earl and Rita, purchased the 270-acre farm when they were married in 1949. They milked twenty Guernsey cows and sold their milk to Florin Dairy in Wabasha, MN. In 1952, they built a four stall-milking parlor and converted one of the barns into a loose housing unit. This parlor was one of the first units built in the state of Wisconsin. Their herd gradually grew and they converted to milking Holsteins. In 1969, they put freestalls in their loose housing barn and in 1975, the milking parlor was enlarged to an eight stall unit. In 1969, an adjoining sixty-acre parcel was purchased and another neighboring farm of eighty-five tillable acres was added in 1977.

Earl and Rita raised their seven children on these farms.

Earl and Rita built a new house on the farm after Greg and his wife Becky were married in 1980. Greg and Becky moved into the century old farmhouse. Dennis and his wife Deb were married in 1981 and joined the farming operation in 1982. They built a new house on the farm in 1987. In 1986, the milking parlor was enlarged to a twelve-stall unit and the freestall barn was later enlarged to 120 stalls. Village Edge Farms now has a Holstein dairy herd of 125 cows with all replacements being home raised. There is an additional 230 acres of land that is rented. The main crops are alfalfa, corn, small grains and pasture.

Another highlight is the involvement of our farm in the MAST program through the University of Minnesota. Since 1989, the farm has been host to students from ten different countries from around the world. The students spend four to twelve months working together with the Hetrick family on the farm, learning American farming techniques, and being a part of the family. Earl and Rita still live on the farm and help out on occasion. Rita has been the bookkeeper for fifty-four years. Greg and Becky have three children, two girls Natasha and Megan, and one boy, Zachary. Dennis and Deb have four children, three boys, Nathan, Aaron and Andrew along with one girl Kristin. All of the children help out on the farm when they can.

One of the family highlights has been the process of becoming an environmentally safe organic dairy farm. In 1991 the Hetrick family went away from the chemical and commercial fertilizers that pollute the air and soils. By 1997, the farm was partially certified organic. Then two years later the cows and all the land that was farmed was certified organic. In the year 2000, Greg and Dennis met together with other sustainable and organic farmers to start the formation of Organic Choice; with the dream to market their own dairy products.

Our farm and families are our biggest pride and joy. The Hetrick family is very proud to work hard together to provide a better product for the consumer. The family is also proud to provide a healthier environment for the next generation to come.

Sincerely,

Greg Hetrick, Founder

Organic Producer

Nelson, WI

Organic Choice, LLC. 251 Industrial Drive Mondovi, WI 54755 (715) 926-4788

Village Edge Farms Ltd.

Greg Hetrick, Founder

Organic Producer

Nelson, WI

Village Edge Farms is located next to the little village of Nelson, in the area of west central Wisconsin along the Mississippi River. The farm was homesteaded in 1865 by David J. Hetrick and has been owned and operated by six generations of the Hetrick family. Brothers Greg and Dennis, along with their families, now operate the family farm.