Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Mike Naig will present the Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award to the Isreal (Is) and Kristin Noelck Family of Franklin County, Iowa, on Aug. 23.
The Wergin Good Farm Neighbor Award is made possible through a partnership with the Coalition to Support Iowa’s Farmers (CSIF), The Big Show on WHO Radio and the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship. Now in its 20th year, this award recognizes Iowa livestock farmers who take pride in caring for the environment and their livestock while also being good neighbors. It is named in memory of Gary Wergin, a long-time WHO Radio farm broadcaster who helped create the award.
A Multi-Generational Family Farm
Noelck Farms was established in the 1960s by Ivan and Karen Noelck. In 1992, their son, Is, joined the farming operation. Today, the multi-generational family farm includes Is and his wife, Kristin, and their three children: sons Isaiah and his wife Reann and their daughter Halston; Noah and his fiancé Maci; and daughter Isabella. An additional farming partnership includes Is’ brother Issac and his family. Though Ivan and Karen have since retired, at one point, three generations of the family were farming the land together, the Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship said in a release.
“Multi-generational farm families like the Noelcks are key to the continued strength and resiliency of our rural communities. Not only do the Noelcks demonstrate care for their land and livestock, but they are also deeply embedded into the fabric of their community through service to others,” Secretary Naig said in a release.
Livestock production is a critical part of the Noelcks’ farm. In addition to owning a cow-calf herd, the family finishes cattle and hogs. They maintain health and production records on their registered purebred Angus herd and are Beef Quality Assurance (BQA) certified. Their hog operation is outfitted with the latest technology to ensure the pigs are raised in a comfortable environment to ensure maximum efficiency and productivity, the release said.
The family also grows corn, soybeans and hay, incorporating conservation on their fields to protect the soil and improve water quality. They utilize no-till and strip tillage to minimize disruption to the soil. For the past eight years, they have planted cover crops, including rye and various brassicas depending on the crop rotation.
The family also owns or co-owns two area businesses: Noelck Ag Services and Franklin Grassland Seed, both of which trace back to area farmer and businessman Dennis Strother.
“Dennis and Is started feeding cattle together at the farmstead that the Noelcks eventually purchased and now live on. But the partnership between the two men extends much further,” the release said.
Now known as Noelck Ag Services, co-owned with Kristin’s cousin Ross Enslin, the business started as Strother’s Pioneer Seed dealership in 1997. Is started as an associate and the business eventually transitioned to his ownership even as they continued to work together for a few years.
Today, the business continues as a retailer for Pioneer Seed as well as Titan Pro Crop Protection products. Franklin Grassland, a feed and seed business, sells lawn, CRP, and cover crop seed. Strother started the business in 1987 and transitioned it to his son Scott in 2000 before it was purchased by the Noelck family.
“The Noelcks are big proponents of serving their community as well as the agricultural industry,” the release said.
Is has served on the Franklin County Cattlemen’s board for many years and was a youth baseball and football coach. He also has served in a leadership capacity with Pheasants Forever. Kristin was on the school’s Quarterback Club to raise funds for the football program. Family members are also members of the Iowa Cattlemen’s Association, Iowa Farm Bureau, Iowa Corn Growers Association, American Angus Association, American Hereford Association, and American Maine-Anjou Association.
