Farmer Profile: John Wallace

Knowing where your food comes from means getting to know the farmers how grow or raise it. That’s why we like to regularly turn the spotlight on some of the Arkansas farmers and ranchers who are working hard to put food on tables around the country and the world. This week, we introduce you to […]

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Growing the Grape Business

You may be aware that there are, in fact, wines made in Arkansas. You may have also seen our previous story on the Post Winery in Altus or our videos about the process of harvesting and processing muscadine grapes. But, did you know that the business of growing grapes in Arkansas has grown enough to […]

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Farmer Q&A: The Wootens

Q & A Conversation with Poultry Farmers O’Neil & Casey Wooten  O’Neil Wooten is a poultry farmer growing broiler chickens for Foster Farms on his Strong, Arkansas farm in Union County. O’Neil’s son Casey and daughter Wendi Laster live on the farm with their families and have their own broiler contracts with Foster Farms. Between […]

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Farm Family Recipe: Mamaw’s Squash Dressing

by Maddison Stewart, Arkansas Farm Bureau Every family has that one recipe. You know, the one that makes you think of your family. The one that makes you happy when you’re cooking it and then makes you very happy when you eat it. The Sims family of Conway County, Western District Farm Family of the […]

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Growing Sweet Potatoes Part 2

Shawn Peebles of Woodruff is one of a select group of sweet potato growers in Arkansas and the only grower of organic sweet potato growers in the state. He and other sweet potato farmers are busy harvesting their crop in time to get them to grocery stores for the holiday meal season. In this second […]

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Growing Sweet Potatoes Part 1

Fall is officially here, but, in typical Arkansas fashion, it doesn’t quite feel like it yet. Nevertheless, Thanksgiving will be here in no time, and that means it’s also “sweet potato season.” Growers like Shawn Peebles of Woodruff are busy pulling their crop from the ground in time to get them to groceries and on […]

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Lock, Stock & Barrel: The Ralstons, Part 2

Tim and Robin Ralston saw an opportunity in milling and packaging their own rice, but that opportunity was a huge risk. It still is, but they are feeling good about their decision. Tim says they mill everything they grow. “But when you stack it up against some of the big corporate mills, it’s really very, […]

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Lock, Stock & Barrel: Ralstons Aim for Farm-to-Table Rice

Ralston Family Farms  is unique. When it comes to rice, it’s a “vertically integrated farm.” What’s that you might ask? It simply means they grow, mill, package, market, sell and ship the rice. Everything is done from the farm. It’s the closest thing to farm-to-table you can get without having Tim and Robin cook and […]

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Farmer Q&A: The Hills of Howard County

Nathan and Nicole Hill are swine, poultry and cattle farmers near the community of Newhope on the Pike and Howard County line. They’ve been married 13 years. Nathan is 35 and left a job as a high school football and baseball coach, while Nicole left a nursing career in Hooks, Texas to move back home […]

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Going Organic: A Q&A with Shawn Peebles

Shawn Peebles is an all-organic farmer. He runs Peebles Organic out of Augusta and everything he grows on the 1,500 acres he farms follows the strict organic guidelines necessary to be certified as “organic produce.” He’s been at it for 15 years, growing edamame, corn, green beans, sweet potatoes and processor pumpkins. Organic farming is […]

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