Contact: Al Bekkum, 608-634-3199, abekkum@mwt.net
WESTBY, Wis. – Bekkum Family Farms, a dairy, beef and pork producer in southwest Wisconsin, announced today it earned a $232,051 Value-Added Producer Grant from the United States Department of Agriculture to market its farmstead products.
USDA Secretary Tom Vilsack last week announced the award, one of 110 grants to agricultural producers and rural businesses across the nation. Bekkum Family Farms is one of only four grants selected in Wisconsin. The family-owned operation is home to Nordic Creamery, an award-winning farmstead dairy facility. Owners Al and Sarah Bekkum, with their six children, plan to use the grant money to help market cheese produced from their herd of cows, as well as market their grass-fed beef and buttermilk-fed pork.
“We are honored to be recognized and selected by the USDA to receive this grant,” Al Bekkum said. “We look forward to expanding the marketing of our growing family farm products, and know this will help set up our farm for the next generation.”
Bekkum, a 25-year veteran and award-winning licensed cheesemaker and buttermaker, handcrafts artisan dairy products at Nordic Creamery, a farmstead facility the family opened in 2012. The family’s cheese and small-batch churned butter have earned gold and silver medals at both the U.S. and World Championship Cheese Contests. All cheese and butter is certified naturally grown, with cows grazing on pastures in the spring, summer and fall, and hay in the winter.
In addition to expanding marketing of its award-winning line of dairy products, the USDA grant will allow the Bekkums to increase market exposure for their high-quality grass-fed beef and buttermilk-fed pork.
“We are lucky to live on a farm that’s been in our family since 1917,” Bekkum said. “The fertile soil and exceptional grazing land allow us to make a living from the land and raise our children on the family farm. Through this grant, we look forward to expanding our offerings and getting the word out about Bekkum Family Farms.”
To learn more about Bekkum Family Farms, contact Bekkum at 608-634-3199 or email abekkum@mwt.net. To learn more about Nordic Creamery, visit http://www.nordiccreamery.com.
