Rooted in Autaugaville, Ala., Autauga Farming Company has spent more than a century refining one of the Southeast’s most distinguished commercial cow herds. Founded in 1919 and now stewarded by the fourth and fifth generations of the Wendland family, the operation reflects a deep, unwavering commitment to beef improvement.
Because of their legacy of transforming performance-based record keeping, genetic selection and environmental stewardship from principles into practice, the Wendlands were recognized as the 2026 Beef Improvement Federation Commercial Producer of the Year.
“Autauga Farming Co. and the Wendland family symbolize the performance principles of the Beef Improvement Federation and have done so for generations,” says Michelle Elmore, Alabama Beef Cattle Improvement Association (BCIA) executive secretary.
Today, Autauga Farming Co. is owned and operated by Andy Wendland and his sons, Dan and Drew.
Deep Roots, Living Mission
Autauga Farming Co. was established in 1919 by William Howard Smith as part of his McQueen Smith Farms. In 1960, Milton Wendland purchased the operation from his father-in-law, setting in motion a multi-generational stewardship.
“Faith, family and community are the cornerstones for both our past and future,” says Dan Wendland, livestock manager.
That sentiment is reflected in 107 years of continuous operation across approximately 3,000 acres of pasture and hay fields, 1,000 acres of timber, 3,000 acres of row crops, a fertilizer dealership and custom farming services.
The fall-calving cow herd consists of 1,018 breeding females, operating as a closed herd for more than 40 years — a disciplined management choice that has allowed the Wendlands to cultivate consistent genetics and measure improvement over time with remarkable precision.
By eliminating outside female influence, the Wendlands have built a genetic program precisely tailored to Alabama’s sandy soils and climate. Their three-breed terminal rotation of Angus, Hereford and Charolais is engineered for maximum hybrid vigor, producing calves that excel in maternal traits, feedlot performance and carcass quality.
62 Years of Performance Data — and Counting
Few commercial operations in the country can point to a record-keeping tradition as long as Autauga Farming Co.'s. As a charter member of the Alabama BCIA in 1964, the operation has applied performance record keeping continuously for 62 years.
Elmore points out the Wendlands have maintained active Alabama BCIA Performance Advocate status for the past five consecutive years.
The Performance Advocate Program is rigorous, requiring complete herd records in six data areas — breeding data, pregnancy percentage of cows and heifers, calf adjusted weaning weights and weaning ratios, mature cow weights at calf weaning for calculation of percent cow weight to calf weaning weight, yearling weights and ratios for replacement heifers, and herd health programs and treatments. Autauga Farming Co. meets every requirement — and has earned Top Adjusted Weaning Weight Awards in the Large Herd Division, Most Improved Herd recognition, and multiple BCIA Gold Star Cow Awards in the process.
Today, the operation manages its records through CattleMax, an internet-based platform accessible from a mobile phone for real-time data capture at the chute and tracks financial performance through both QuickBooks and Ag View Solutions’ Profit Manager.
Wendland explains the integration of these systems gives them a granular view of per-acre and per-hour equipment costs, enabling evidence-based decisions on capital investments — whether upgrading equipment or expanding the bred heifer program.
A Genetics Program Built for the Market
The family’s deliberately constructed three-breed rotation system assigns Angus-sired cows to Hereford bulls, Charolais-sired cows to Angus bulls and Hereford-sired cows to Charolais bulls, creating a predictable and complementary genetic cycle across the entire herd.
Bull selection is methodical and expected progeny difference (EPD)-driven.
“When selecting herd sires, a baseline need is identified in each breed and a range of parameters is then established for each EPD,” Wendland says. “Naturally, they must fit the ‘look’ as the first selection criteria. Structural soundness of legs and feet, body confirmation and length, muscular composition and disposition are first impression items. Then bulls are selected on our EPD qualifications.”
For replacement heifer sires, calving ease is the priority. For mature cow groups with strong historical weaning data, higher weaning weight EPDs take precedence.
“As the use of EIDs and receiving carcass data has developed, the data has shown the Charolais-sired calves did not perform as well on the rail as other sire breeds,” he explains. “Therefore, when purchasing any new Charolais sires, focus will be on carcass trait EPDs as a priority to enhance Charolais-sired carcass yields.”
Replacement heifer selection is equally disciplined. Heifer calves are evaluated within sire-breed contemporary groups on adjusted weaning weight ratio, percent dam weight and dam MPPA values. Top performers are then sorted visually for docility, physical conformation and body condition.
In fall 2025, the operation reintroduced artificial insemination (AI) into the replacement heifer breeding program for the first time in 25 years.
“Our goal for implementing AI was to reduce the length of our calving season, to create more uniform calves and to reduce costs of owning three additional bulls for natural service,” Wendland explains. “Other than the replacement heifers, all herds of cattle are bred via natural service.”
A Sale That Shaped an Industry
In 1980, Milton Wendland recognized fall-born calves could fill a predictable gap in Midwestern feedlot inventory caused by spring calving, and he founded the Producers Feeder Calf Sale to capitalize on that demand.
More than four decades later, that sale — now one of the premier online feeder calf auctions in the Southeast and managed by the Elite Livestock Marketing Group — remains the primary marketing channel for the Autauga Farming Co. feeder calf crop.
Calves are weaned and preconditioned for a minimum of 60 days under the Zoetis SelectVAC program before the first Wednesday in August sale date, with complete vaccination, treatment history, weight and breed composition data provided to prospective buyers.
“Our management practices are driven largely by consumer demand, as well as ethical and environmentally conscientious decisions,” Wendland summarizes. “As the Producers Feeder Calf Sale grew, buyers became more like friends and offered insight into the wants and needs of the feedlots they represented. Breed preferences, backgrounding timeline and vaccination programs all came from insight from industry leaders and visionaries.”
Innovation on Every Front
The Wendlands have embraced technology at every level of the operation. Electronic identification (EID) tags are used on all animals, enabling weight recording and inventory management directly from a handheld reader at the chute — reducing stress time and improving data accuracy.
A hydraulic chute with built-in electronic scales, purchased in 2021, allows weights to be captured every time cattle are worked, creating a continuous gain-tracking record uploaded directly to CattleMax.
On the environmental stewardship front, the operation manages a complex range of soil types across the Alabama River bottomlands, directing clay-based soils toward row crops and sandy soils toward livestock.
Grid soil sampling drives targeted nutrient applications — using both organic inputs like poultry litter and commercial fertilizers — to minimize waste and optimize fertility.
A Family of Leaders
Beyond the farm gate, the Wendland family has invested deeply in the broader agricultural community.
Elmore summarizes this contribution, saying: “The leadership of the Wendland family has been profound within local, state and national cattle and farming industries and organizations. Their innovative spirit and love of agriculture have and will continue to make a positive and influential impact. Each generation has served as a dedicated model for progressive agriculture.”
From a 62-year record-keeping legacy and a rigorously managed closed herd to a nationally recognized feeder calf sale and a forward-looking embrace of AI breeding, virtual fencing technology and carcass-data-driven EPD selection, the Wendland family has built something rare — an operation that honors where it came from while continuously pushing toward what’s next.
“Their innovative spirit and love of agriculture have and will continue to make a positive and influential impact,” Elmore summarizes. “Each generation has served as a dedicated model for progressive agriculture. Autauga Farming Co. will continue to be an advocate for improvement in efficiency, profitability and sustainability of agriculture.”
Wendland summarizes, “I’m honored to receive this recognition on behalf of my family, ancestors and team at Autauga Farming Co. who have set the foundation to make this possible.”
The family says their goal is simply “to leave the land better than we found it.” After 107 years, the evidence suggests they are well on their way.
