by George Jared (gjared@talkbusiness.net)
Cattle farmer John Kunkel spent much of his professional career as a buyer for Walmart. He decided in 2014 to return to his childhood home in Evening Shade, a small town in Sharp County. He wanted to raise cattle.
He returned home to run his family farm, Peaceful River Farm, located along the Strawberry River. It’s been in their family for more than a century.
He began with a herd of 14 head and has been able to grow it to about 50 head. An input cost explosion at the beginning of 2022 coupled with a drought that impacted hay production means many small cattle operations are struggling to survive, Kunkel told Talk Business & Politics.
