Succession as Stewardship

Kevin Yon speaks as earnestly as he can on a crowded convention floor; he can barely walk 10 feet without being stopped for a handshake and a quick chat. Yet when he’s asked what stewardship means to him and his family, his tone becomes more like that of an older cattle producer standing on a hill, looking out over the pastures  while the sun sets on a picture-perfect late September day.

“I think the responsibility of stewarding what we’ve been given is one of the most important jobs that I’ll ever have,” he says. “And in that, I’m probably no different from any other cattle producer. I believe most of us feel that burden or that responsibility. I love the land, and I love conserving the resources we’ve been given.”

Kevin and his wife, Lydia, are two of the most-interviewed, most-written-about and most-respected beef producers in the Southeast. Their Ridge Spring, South Carolina, farm has seen field days and photo shoots, along with countless seed, chemical and equipment trials. They host two livestock sales per year and operate a small retail shop in town, where they sell pecans from their orchard.

If all that sounds like day-to-day life on a farm that’s been in the family for a century or more, that’s understandable. But Kevin and Lydia are first-generation farmers who are only now starting to turn the operation over to their three grown children.

“We had bull customers who’d been on their farm for 250 years, with no one to carry it on,” Kevin says. “So they sold us our first 100 acres. And over the course of decades, they transitioned their operation to us. They never gave us anything, but they did provide us with an opportunity. They could have sold the operation for way more money; but, this way, their legacy continues as ours is just beginning.”

Today, Yon Family Farms maintains a large herd of Angus cattle, and they sell about 500 registered bulls during their spring and fall sales. All three of the Yons’ children work on the farm full time, while one daughter-in-law oversees their retail operation.

Grass Farmers First

At least part of that success has been the result of a focus on what the Yons consider to be their primary crop.

“I’ve said many times: ‘We’re grass farmers,’” Kevin says. “So we try to have something grazable year-round. It’s good for the land, and it’s good for the cattle. And I think we just need to give them the chance to be the ruminants they are and to get out and graze.”

While Yon Family Farms has a reputation for clean pastures, Kevin admits that a weed-free pasture is a goal they don’t feel the need to pursue.

“We have to think about maximum versus optimum forage production,” he says. “A few weeds are OK. To us, that means our fertility is good and we’re doing a good job of growing grass. We can’t go out and get every weed; it’s just not economical. But we work hard at it, and we keep our pastures pretty clean with the help of good products and solid expertise from partners like Corteva.”

Making Room at the Table

Beyond their focus on forage, the Yons have made very intentional movements that have allowed each of their children the opportunity to learn, to come back to the farm and to make a living for themselves and their own families.

“We wanted to grow the farm to a size that if the children wanted to come back, we would at least have the foundation of an operation that could support multiple families,” he says. “The table is only so big; so if more people are eating, we have to make it bigger.”

For the Yons, part of the process meant making clear there would be no walk-ons. Each of the children was expected to leave, to get an education and to come back to the farm with something of value — a new method, a new idea, a new way of doing this or that.

“We want to give our family members and our team members space to learn and space to make mistakes,” Kevin says. “And we want to give everyone grace when they make mistakes. Because we do. And they will.”

And when the inevitable mistakes are made, the Yons fall back on what Kevin calls the P’s.

“You have to be patient, because there’s nothing easy about what we do,” he says. “You have to maintain a passion for the business; I don’t think any of us do this for the money, but it’s a wonderful way to live. You have to be persistent. You have to have partners, like Corteva, who you can depend on and who are committed to your success. And, for our family, prayer is definitely one of the P’s.”

Planning for the Next Generation

But there’s one more P that Kevin considers indispensable: a solid plan.

“We hear about succession planning, and we say, ‘That’s a great idea,’” he says. “Then we get home, and that’s as far as it goes. Succession planning is hard for farm and ranch families, because our business is our land and our land is part of who we are. That makes planning harder, but it also makes it more imperative that we do it.”

He admits that handing the keys to the next generation can be difficult, especially for farm dads.

“We have a tough time letting go of ownership or control or decision-making,” he says. “And I’m no different. I struggle with it. But when you have people coming on who are competent, who want to do well, who are bold enough to take initiative, that helps.”

Despite a strong do-it-yourself ethic, the Yons knew better than to tackle the job of putting together a succession plan by themselves. They worked with a trusted professional to put thoughts to paper and to turn those thoughts into a workable succession plan that Kevin considers a living document.

“We wanted the very best we could find,” he says. “It’s expensive. It’s time-consuming. But that’s not a place where we’re willing to cut corners. That said, we don’t want to let perfect get in the way of good. We’ll never feel as if our plan is perfect, but we want to be sure it’s sound and it’s equitable.”

Kevin tells other families that, while the process of putting together a succession plan isn’t always fun, it’s critical to the survival of the operation.

“It’s absolutely imperative that farm families start the process” he says. “When you do, you might learn that fair is not always equal. But, for us, we want to be kind and we want to be loving. Because when it’s all said and done, if we’ve lost happiness or unity in our family, what have we gained? Nothing.”

What is one of the tools Yon Family Farms depends on for pasture weed control?
Find out