Jacki Christman knows that farming isn’t easy. It takes constant dedication and hard work. She learned these values while growing up in a family of ranchers — especially from her mother, who Christman considers a role model.
“My mother is probably the hardest working person I’ve been around. My parents started with nothing and built up their operation. They put in a lot of hard work,” Christman explains. “A lot of the credit for what I’ve done goes to her.”
After college, this work ethic carried on in Christman. She moved to Hettinger, North Dakota, for work, where she met her husband, Jordan. They got married and soon began building an operation of their own.
“We were able to buy this place from our neighbors who retired, so we worked with them to get it when we were young and didn’t have any money. We were trying to grow and update our equipment, so we were really tight on cash. This was one of our biggest accomplishments was owning our own farmstead and our own land.”
Calling their operation JC Farms, the Christmans now raise cattle and grow wheat, corn, soybeans, sunflowers and canola. Wheat, she says, is their bread and butter.
“My husband keeps really good records. He keeps everything on the cloud and can go back and look at everything … The first year he tried it, he was very impressed with WestBred® … Every year, even in drought or the wet year, or a bad soil or good soil, it seems to be doing super well. We’ve been really impressed with our WestBred, so that’s why we continue to add more acres every year.”
Christman now has her own kids and teaches them all about farming and hard work, much like her mother did when she was young.
“My kids, since they were little, came along with me a lot. They are now 9, 7, and 5. The 5-year-old is the only one not in school full time; he’s in preschool. He goes in the tractor all day with Jordan or he comes with me. Each kid has their strengths and weaknesses, but it’s pretty impressive because I think, ‘at that age, did I know this?’”
Her kids aren’t the only ones learning from Christman. She shares her farming, ranching and family experiences on her Facebook page, JC Farms. Here, she tells the story of the family behind your food, stressing the importance of trust in agriculture and the value of knowing where your food comes from.
“Generations ago, everyone was like, ‘oh, my grandpa had a farm, or I was raised on a farm.’ And there were a lot bigger farms, but people that are from a city hear a lot of misinformation,” Christman explains. “All of our food is raised for consumption at some point or time, be it for animals or for humans. So, we follow the guidelines, and we want to show people that you can do it safely. There are families behind the food.”
In addition to farming, ranching, parenting and sharing it all with the world, Christman also runs the JC Country Store, where she sells meat from the cattle they raise and other local products directly to their community.
“I thought people would like to know where their meat is coming from and being raised, and if they have an option, they’d like to buy from U.S. Ranchers. We sell beef that was born and raised here, so it’s from us. Everything is off our farm.”
Christman has put in the work to achieve what she has today. And her advice to other women who want to succeed in farming is simple: keep at it.