Hands Full, Hearts Together: Jacksons Are Johnson County Farm Family Of The Year
by Janice Penix
For Dylan and Allyson Jackson, it took the loss of something precious for them to discover all they had to gain as a family.
The couple, along with their six-year-old daughter Caroline, own and operate Cole Jackson Farms near Coal Hill, and are the 2024 Johnson County Farm Family of the Year.
“Our family decided to dive off headfirst into farming when we decided to grow our family and Dylan was working out of town,” Allyson said. “We suffered the loss of our first child, Cole, and we saw firsthand how short life could be. We had spent our lives running and chasing the dollar, and we realized we needed to slow down and enjoy our time together. Farming was just that thing we needed.”
Getting Started
The family has been farming for eight years. The first year of farming they rented 306 acres. Now they own 151 acres and rent 989 for a total of 1,140 acres. They grow hay on 720 acres, producing a total of 4,000 round bales annually. They also have a contract with Cargill for turkey production and raise 240,000 turkeys each year. The family owns 25 cow-calf pairs of registered Angus and Gelbvieh cattle.
“We started farming in 2016 when we got a USDA loan to buy 50 momma cows, with the goal of farming and raising our children on a farm,” Dylan said. “We wanted to live the American dream and help feed the world safe and healthy food. At the time, we were pregnant with our son, Cole, and Allyson had an early delivery, which led to the loss of our son after a nine-month hospital stay.
“This changed our lives forever and we knew from that moment we didn’t want to miss the little moments. Allyson had the idea to build poultry houses, so we could work from home and raise our family together. So we did just that and from there it continues to grow yearly and expand as we gain more and more knowledge and assistance.”
During the time the Jacksons began building their poultry houses, Allyson discovered she was pregnant with Caroline and the little girl was born into farm life…
To read the full story see the June 4 edition of The Graphic, found online or in businesses throughout Johnson County.
Photo: Dylan and Allyson Jackson with daughter, Caroline
