For Kansas beef producer Trey Ruetti, quality and value comes first.
“Quality is our first box that needs to be checked with everything we do,” Ruetti says. “As expensive as junk is these days, a little extra for good quality is a no-brainer. If it’s worth doing at all, it’s worth doing right — whether that’s equipment, fencing or the cattle themselves. The second has to be value.”
Ruetti’s approach to farming is collaborative and forward-thinking. He consults widely, learns from others’ experiences and is willing to invest in quality infrastructure and genetics. His operation reflects a modern approach to cattle farming that balances traditional knowledge with innovative techniques.
Ruetti and his wife, Lexie, have a 200-head commercial cow herd that is currently in the process of transitioning to a registered Wagyu herd. The couple’s goal is to build a direct-to-consumer e-commerce beef sales platform — Firegrass Wagyu — with their partner, Michael Tilley.
“We raise them from birth to finish, aside from the few operators we are currently working with through our calf buy-back program,” he explains.
Ruetti’s family has farmed since the 1910s and solely crops since the mid 1980s. Although his family prefers crops to cows, the couple bought their first seven heifer pairs in 2014 and have built their herd since that initial purchase.
“The symbiotic nature of cattle production and grain farming is paramount,” he says. “One does not exist in its current form without the other. We bale our waterways, we graze our stalks and stubble fields. In the last few years, we have been implementing cover crops on more and more acres, and grazing them subsequently. From the biological side, these prairie soils evolved with a large ruminant animal grazing, and I believe we are witnessing these soils wake back up and take the next step in production due to their return.”
Investing in New Facilities
Last fall the couple made the decision to build a 500-head feedyard with working facilities at their headquarters location.
“Today’s cattle market has made it easier to justify investment on this side of the aisle,” Ruetti says. “With that said, starting from scratch, our choices were pretty limited. Our options were either to reinvest or sell out. Lexie and I are too stubborn for Option B.”
As the couple is transitioning from a commercial to registered herd, they have been implanting purchased Wagyu embryos in all their cows. Prior to their new facility they had been using a portable corral to do all their set-up and embryo work.
“It’s been an awful lot of faith in single-strand hot wire, and has not been without fault,” he recalls. “We wanted a space that would reduce the stress of gathering on the animals, as well as ourselves. This, coupled with the need to increase space to finish our calves, made this decision simple.”
After visiting several operations, consulting with other beef producers and visiting with different companies, the couple chose to put in a 20-foot adjustable alley, as well as gates and continuous fence from Linn Post and Pipe for their feedyard project.
“The reasoning was pretty simple,” he says. “They came highly recommended from people I trusted. The quality was easy to see, and Ryan Wieters made the entire process incredibly simple.”
The facility features a bud box handling system.
“I’d been around some bud boxes, and I’ve been around some tubs, and I thought the flow of the bud box made sense,” he explains.
He incorporated a slight modification, adding a tub-style gate for that occasional stubborn animal.
To go with the bud box system, he purchased a used Moly Silencer cattle chute. He says he’s been impressed with its longevity, reliability, durability and its quiet operation.
He notes, “It’s a used chute, 20 years old, and everything still works.”
Feed Bunks and Waterers
The water infrastructure received significant attention. Ruetti invested in Johnson Concrete Waterers. He chose the water tanks because of their sturdiness and its heating elements.
Local contractor Kyle Blackwood of Blackwood Fencing did the lion’s share of the project’s construction including the custom-formed bunks.
“He is a premier builder in our area which is easy to see in all of his work,” Ruetti says. “His common-sense approach coupled with his creativity made this project come to life.”
The facility represents more than just a current solution it is a steppingstone to future expansion with the family’s cow herd, feedlot and beef business. For Ruetti, the cattle are more than a business venture; they are a testament to his deep commitment of raising his family involved in agriculture and specifically the beef industry.
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