Friday rewind: Dad's wisdom with Roger Toquam

Chris

Barron: Welcome everybody to another episode of the Aggies Pitch, and we are going to have a great conversation here with another Dad's Wisdom. It seems like it goes a while in between the Dad's Wisdom conversations, but they always seem to be some of the most popular discussions. And we're lucky enough today to have with us Roger Tokwam. Roger, how's it going?

Roger

Toquam: Good, it's great. It rained a little bit last night, so it makes all farmers a little happier.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, yeah, we're recording this in the summer of '22, so if you're listening to this in '24, you know, hopefully it's good out there. And it's, you know, it's one of those years where it's the have and have-nots though, you know. You've probably experienced that in your farming career where some years you get a lot and some years you don't get much, right?

Roger

Toquam: Exactly, yep, that's what keeps farmers humble.

Chris

Barron: Exactly, exactly. So hey, Roger Wood, we just came off a day of working and I always tell people this, you know, you ask yourself how much time do you spend working on the business versus working in the business? And today we spent all day working on the business. You know, talk a little bit about that. You know, what do you think of, you know, what we're working on as you work on the business? Versus in the business? Any thought prospects on that?

Roger

Toquam: Well, in my mind, and I think most farmers, we get satisfaction and we get a feeling of accomplishment when we work, when we work in the shop and when we work in the field and we do things that a farmer is always grown up to. But as time gets, times move on and things change, it's more and more important to work in the business or on the business rather, because that's what pays the bills and that's what gives the next generation that opportunity to enjoy the benefits of farming.

Chris

Barron: It's more fun to drive a tractor than it is to drive a desk, isn't it? But it sure is. Seems like the money is made there. So yeah, well, let's get rolling here on, on this conversation. I want to start out by just having you tell us a little bit about your family first of all and kind of how you got started in, in agriculture.

Roger

Toquam: Well, I, um, I always enjoyed working with my father and, and on the farm and, and building things and driving tractors like what, you know, all of us did. Um, and so when I graduated from high school, I went to a local Vo-Tech, um, in the early '80s or mid-'80s, and that was for farm management. And so I picked up a lot of good things because of course that was the '80s and Nobody really— being a farmer was not a popular thing to do, but I, my heart was still in farming. So I, I learned how to make management decisions at that stage. I married my high school sweetheart Rhonda, and we moved on to a farm that my dad had purchased in the early '80s, and our family our family grew and we had 3 sons. Brennan, which is now married to Stacy, and they have 2 children, a boy and a little girl that was just born this week. Our other son, Josh, he's also married to Erica.

And then our youngest son, Isaiah, and he is at this time not married.

Chris

Barron: Gotcha.

Roger

Toquam: And then And then my father will be 87 this September.

Chris

Barron: Okay, we need to be, we should probably be cornering him too.

Roger

Toquam: We should be, yes.

Chris

Barron: Well, and maybe we can do that next time we get up in your neck of the woods. And speaking of your neck of the woods, I failed to be a good host and when I introduced you to say that you're from Blooming Prairie, Minnesota, right?

Roger

Toquam: Correct, correct, yep.

Chris

Barron: So where's that at in Minnesota for somebody that's listening and is like, well, where's that at?

Roger

Toquam: Kind of southeast, south-central Minnesota. If you draw a triangle between Rochester, Austin, and Owatonna, we would be right in the center of that.

Chris

Barron: Yep, awesome. Right in God's country, right? We're all the best crops, our best yields, perfect weather.

Roger

Toquam: Oh, you just keep thinking that illusion there.

Chris

Barron: Exactly. So, um, awesome. And so, you know, you have a great family. You know, you talked about your, uh, your, your wife, and, and she was at the meeting today, an integral part of your operation, doing the financing and all that stuff, and and we'll get back to your wife and your boys here in a minute. But what I want to do is you just described your dad. Talk a little bit about him and about his impact on you as a farmer and some of the things maybe that you learned from him growing up. What are some of the wisdom pieces he gave you?

Roger

Toquam: Sure. Well, he was a big conservationist. And so he taught me the value of taking care of the land and the land will take care of you. So my dad stopped moldboard plowing in 1966 and then went into a conservation tillage system, and then in 1980 went to a ridge-till system, which took us all the way until last year when we switched to strip-till on our farm. But so he always loved the land, took care of the land. His father before him bought the farm and it was actually, it was actually an unbroken farm and which is kind of unusual for 1940. The interesting part about our area was it is so wet and Ripley Township is where we're located, but it was so wet that In the Dust Bowl days, the U.S.

government would load up cattle from South Dakota and put them on a train and bring them to the nearby town of Claremont and unload these cattle and then herd them out to our neighborhood because it was the only green grass they could find between here and South Dakota. And so our neighborhood got known as the Green Valley. And so that's kind of our kind of a neat thing. And, and of course, with the invention of tile that my grandpa put in, and my dad, of course, we made that land very productive.

Chris

Barron: Awesome. What, um, so can stay in on your dad for a minute. What, what are some of the, um, again, back to the lessons, you know, any, anything in particular? I'm sure you were a perfect kid growing up and stuff, you know. Was there any any key lessons or any, anything? Well, geez, I kind of goofed up there, but I learned my lesson. Here's how Dad handled it, or anything along those lines?

Roger

Toquam: Um, I think my, my dad didn't enjoy, um, some of the man— the management things like herbicides and seed selections and those kind of things. And so Dad turned that all over to me, and back right out of high school, and I, I kind of took that and, and ran with it. So he, he taught me management of the farm, kind of, and I didn't even realize it at the time, but he taught me those kind of management things. And like I said, I started in the, in the '80s when really nobody wanted to be a farmer, and he taught me financial management. And, um, and, and so we were part of a farm management system there in Minnesota through the university, and that, that— so he— that's what he taught me, because that was number one back then, was farm management.

Chris

Barron: Had to get the financials right when everything is that tight, right? Yeah, right, right. Yeah, interest rates and all those things. So it sounds like from a transition thing, and just as an observation, but it looks like you learned a lot about the importance of handing the business from one generation to the next and the importance of that, you know, not just delegating work but delegating some responsibility.

Roger

Toquam: Absolutely, yes.

Chris

Barron: Okay, so what that leads me to then is, you know, we sat here today and working on the business, working through, you know, Profit Manager, working on cost production, working on, you know, talking about all kinds of different things from machinery and equipment to your business structure and things. But the interesting thing is, is how engaged your wife is, knowing the business and being totally there to help with that. So that's huge. But then also, you know, your, your boys have been coming along the way at the same time. And a couple of them were, were busy today. One had a head— is on vacation. So that's great. You know, I told him if he needs help, I would— I could definitely be a helper for him.

Roger

Toquam: You could bait the hook on the— for— on the fishing pole.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, exactly. You know, I could figure something out. And then, you know, one just had a baby. And so, you know, there's, there's always life that goes on. But Josh was here today and, and, you know, in some of the prior meetings that we've had all 3 boys there. And the interesting thing I see with you is each of the boys kind of have their own roles, responsibilities, and their areas of expertise. Talk a little bit about that, about the importance of clearly defining roles and not that you guys are perfect or that any of us are perfect in that, but I think as an observation, you guys have done a great job, and especially you and Rhonda as mom and dad, of laying out here the business divisions that we have.

And you have, you know, one son that's, you know, managing the trucks, you know, Isaiah's running the truck operation, and Josh is, you know, paying attention to the operations, and you've got Brennan that's kind of the agronomy expert in family. Talk a little bit about how you accomplished that, like how, you know, what are some of the advantages and some of the challenges and opportunities there?

Roger

Toquam: I really can't take a lot of credit for it. When the first son came back, Josh, he went to a vo-tech for precision agriculture there in Mankato, Minnesota, because it seemed at that time I was struggling and, and my dad, of course, getting older, we were struggling with technology. And so Josh went to school for precision agriculture, and that just fit his personality, and that fit our need at the time. And then our other son went into the retail business, worked for a couple different co-ops, and a land, a large piece of land came up for rent near us, and we were asked if we would like to rent it, and so we did. Well, we needed labor, and we were getting spread kind of thin on the scouting of the fields and that, so, and doing the spraying, and so Brennan asked if there was room on the farm for him, and we said, sure, and this is the role that we need to have filled.

When Isaiah graduated from high school, he did not want to go to college, and so he said, what, what can I do? And I said, well, I'm, I'm, you know, getting kind of tired of checking on the pigs and managing the hog operation. The job opening that we have right now is, is hog herdsman, and he took that and has not looked back since. He's an excellent hog hog person. So each, each boy has their own role and responsibility, and, um, I, I just, I, I just, I'm just so thankful the way it's all fallen into place. I can't take a lot of credit for it. Each one of the boys just has a gift, and we were able to recognize that gift and put that, those roles and responsibilities onto that. Child, that son.

Chris

Barron: That's awesome. You know, I would give Rhonda a lot of credit here too, probably, right? Because, uh, you know, the, the parenting that you did as they grew up, I think that's huge. So, um, that's really cool. Yep. Um, anything else, um, as far as, you know, like influences as you grew up or grew in the farm operation? Um, any challenges in particular or anything that, you know, you can look back and say, man, boy, I really learned a big lesson on that one? I I screwed this up, or any mistakes you're willing to admit anyway that, you know.

Roger

Toquam: Yeah, I'm sure— well, I know I made a lot of mistakes. You know, raising hogs in a custom finishing operation was one of those— was not one of those mistakes. That came along in 1993 in a time when margins were tight and we needed stability so that that opportunity came along and we jumped on it when, thankfully, when buildings were cheap and the contracts were good. And so that was a good move on that part. But yeah, we made plenty of mistakes over the years. Thankfully they were all small ones and not real large ones.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, well, that's the key is you're gonna do some things right, you're gonna do some things wrong. You just wanna do a few more right things than wrong things probably, right?

Roger

Toquam: Yeah, yeah. Just like grain marketing.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, yeah, have you got that one figured out?

Roger

Toquam: I think we learned that today, that no, I don't.

Chris

Barron: Well, I don't know, I think, I think we all have— we're all pretty average and none of us really know where it's going, even the so-called biggest expert. So one of the questions I forewarned you about that I was going to ask too is if you could go back and tell your 25-year-old self something knowing what you know now. I mean, I, I always tell people. I remember sitting on the edge of a pickup when I was about 10, and I remember some of the older guys standing around the pickup talking, and one of them pointed at me and said, 'Boy, I wish I knew then what I know now.' And I remember saying, 'Well, what is it? Tell me what I need to know.' You know, so what would you go back and tell, um, you know, your 25-year-old self if you go back in time? What would you, what would you say to yourself?

Roger

Toquam: Well, with the land prices, I'd say buy land. One of the things is, uh, as farmers, we just work, work all the time. And, and I think looking back, um, I would, I would take more time to enjoy sunsets with your spouse and enjoy your family more, because the work is always going to be there. The farm is always going to be there for work, to work in. But enjoy every minute that you have with your family. I lost my mom in 2004 to cancer, and I, you know, you really miss those moments that you could have had, you know, after she's gone.

Chris

Barron: Right, right. And it's the same thing too that I think is important with your boys too. I mean, that's one of the comments I think you made today too, that you need to get across to the younger people because My dad always used to say, you know, time doesn't go, you know, fast enough when you're young, and when you're old, or older, I should say, time goes too fast, right? And it's a perspective of what's really going on. And I think our perspective is a little confused when we're younger. We just want stuff to happen right now. And especially in today's world, right, how fast things are changing. You know, it's just the expectation for a younger person is there.

Roger

Toquam: I remember when we bought our first farm, we, you know, I just couldn't wait till I was 40 years old because that's when it would be paid for. Well, just like that, it's 40 years, you're 40 years old and it's like, where did all that time go? And I asked Rhonda the other day, I said, what happened to my 20s? She said, well, you gave one to Josh and you wait. No, I mean, what happened? We were— it seems like just yesterday we were at 30 years old, right?

Chris

Barron: Right, exactly. So now that's interesting. I mean, and you made the comment buy land, um, expand on that a little bit. You know, what, what do you tell these younger guys, you know, when they're sitting there right now looking at, you know, look at where land, land prices are at in some of these areas? I think Iowa had a record, you know, this summer, the summer of '22, of, um, there was an individual land sale like $32,000 was the record. Per acre. I mean, just crazy numbers. And, and we ebb and flow. It's going to go up, it's going to go down. You wonder how much more down it can go though, because we've gone up so far. Even if it does drop, you know, 10-20%, still going to be really high numbers.

Roger

Toquam: Yeah. And, and I don't think the young people need to— I mean, they need to look for opportunities, and because I believe they're out there, you just got to find them. I don't know if that necessarily means buying land. It might mean finding an investor that you like to work with and renting the land. But yeah, until you've built up enough equity to purchase land. But I don't know if buying land as a young person starting out right now is probably the best use of any equity that you'd have.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, it's an unknown time with interest rates going up and inflationary components and things, at least at this time as we record this. Right. Yep. So, all right, the, the last question. I always have a last question, and I forewarned you, so I've had a couple of dads look at me like, where'd you come from with this question? So when you've had a little bit of time to think about it, but, you know, what do you want to leave the, the young listeners with? You know, those, those, you know, you talked about 40, and so I'll give the definition of young as, you know, as Joseph sits here recording this at 18, he thinks 40 is old probably, but you know, those, those that are under the age of 40-ish, um, what do you, what do you tell them?

You know, what, what kind of key things, if there was a couple of key things they need to stay focused on as they work on the business, what are some of those key things that you think probably they need to pay attention to?

Roger

Toquam: Well, a couple things come to mind. Um, It's just, uh, and you'll love to hear this, know your numbers. Oh yeah, know your numbers so that you know, um, which just ties right into grain marketing or, or, or your livestock marketing. Because if you know your numbers and don't try to hit a home run on every sale, uh, just know your numbers, be a margin manager, and, um, you just can't go broke if you know your numbers and you sell into a profit each time. It's just slow and steady wins the race.

Chris

Barron: Anything else?

Roger

Toquam: Anything? Boy, I can't, I can't think of anything. I enjoy working with you. Our family sure enjoys working with Ag View and looking forward to the future.

Chris

Barron: Oh, we appreciate it. And I love the comments. I mean, they tie right in, I think, to what makes you guys a great operation. And, you know, you're paying attention to the numbers, you're getting the numbers dialed in, and it takes a while, right? It's, you don't just sit down and get all this stuff put together in 10 seconds. It's a process and—

Roger

Toquam: You gotta spend a lot of time on the numbers so that you can enjoy spending the time in the tractor cab.

Chris

Barron: Yeah, exactly. And as you get to a point where you can graduate from some of that stuff, maybe you get to spend more time in the tractor and you can make the boys do the number crunching.

Roger

Toquam: How's that? Well, that'd be nice, yeah.

Chris

Barron: So, so that's kind of the goal. But I love the comments, know your numbers and be a margin manager. That's a good, good place to wrap it up.

Roger

Toquam: Yep.

Chris

Barron: Well, thank you. Thank you very much. Roger Tokwam from Blooming Prairie, Minnesota.

Roger

Toquam: And I should throw in there that all three of our boys played football for the Blooming Prairie Awesome Blossoms. That's, that's the mascot in Blooming Prairie, Minnesota. Awesome. Yep, the awesome blossoms, and they lived to talk about it.

Chris

Barron: That's awesome, blossoms. And then also, I guess too, one last thing, but you know, they all played football and you got grandkids now too, so, and you finally got a girl.

Roger

Toquam: Yes, yes.

Chris

Barron: You've had all boys so far, so.

Roger

Toquam: I know, we're not sure which tractor the little girl will be playing with.

Chris

Barron: We'll have to paint one of them pink.

Roger

Toquam: Pink, yeah.

Chris

Barron: But, uh, how many grandkids? How many boys? How many grandkids?

Roger

Toquam: Uh, we just have the two.

Chris

Barron: Okay. All right, Nolan. The boys will have to keep working on that so we get a football team.

Roger

Toquam: Wouldn't that be nice?

Chris

Barron: Yeah, that'll work. So, all right, well, hey, again, Roger, thank you very much. Appreciate this. Thank you. You bet. And again, thanks everybody for listening. And if you've got somebody out there, dad or grandpa, that you think would be a great contribution to having a conversation on Dad's Wisdom, let us know. And hope everybody's having a great week ahead, and we will talk to you soon on the Ag View Pitch.