Featured Farm: Cottonwood Hill Farms

Cottonwood Hill Farms on the outskirts of McClelland in Pottawattamie County is a multigenerational livestock farm. John Springhower’s grandparents started farming what is now Cottonwood Hill Farms in 1955, and his grandmother lived in the house until 2020. John started farming the entire farm in 2013 with corn and soybeans. John’s dream of farming full-time came to fruition in 2021.
​
After learning about environmental, human health, and economic concerns related to conventional rowcrops and the Standard American Diet, John decided to transition the farm primarily to livestock production, starting with grass-fed beef. He later added pigs and chickens, then a dairy herd last year.

In 2021 Cottonwood Hill Farms purchased 21 head of cattle, including 18 dairy cows. Today they are milking 10 cows. They stopped using anhydrous fertilizer, sythentic chemicals, and genetically modified seed and feed. The livestock also no longer consume soy products.
​
Their cattle are primarily Jersey, with some red angus, shorthorn, highland, Aubrac mixed in. The milk protein is A1/A2, but they are moving towards more A2 for the health benefits. The chickens include free-range layers and broilers.

Some of the land on the farm had poor soil health due to many years of rowcrop production, and John wanted to improve the soil health. A rotation of alfalfa and oats has replaced soybeans and corn. Cattle are also rotated through paddocks regularly, and the chicken tractors are moved daily. In the spring, fresh cows are rotated daily, but dry cows and the bull are moved less frequently.
​
Pastures include a mix of cool- and warm-season grasses like orchard grass, rye, timothy grass, and fescue. Some native species like big bluestem have made an appearance recently, a welcome sight indicating that soil health is improving. Eventually they would like to be able to raise all the feed to last throughout the year. They also get mushroom blocks from Terra Firma Fungi to create healthy compost for the soil.

As of August 2023, Cottonwood Hill is taking a break from beef and pork to focus on the dairy. They currently are getting just over 20 gallons per day, but that can vary throughout the year. Food safety is of utmost importance for the dairy. Milking equipment is cleaned with Dawn dish soap and vinegar, and they avoid synthetic chemicals on the livestock and equipment.
​
Just this year, the State of Iowa legalized on-farm sales of raw milk with numerous restrictions and requirements, however, Cottonwood Hill Farms does not sell their milk.  Their milk is obtained through a “Herdshare Program” where they are developing a community of like-minded folks, and plan to do more on-farm events in the future.

Currently all meat sales are on-farm and orders can be made by contacting Cottonwood Hill directly.

Learn more at their website, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube.