We were lucky to catch up with Dan & Ashley Wegmueller recently and have shared our conversation below.

Hi Dan & Ashley, thanks for joining us today. How did you come up with the idea for your business?

The idea of opening our doors to farmstay guests first came to us in 2017. At that time, we were cleaning the farmhouse due to the recent passing of Dan’s parents, while also recognizing that economically, times were changing on the farm. No longer was small-scale agriculture profitable; we needed to diversify into something else, or risk losing the farm. As we were cleaning the farmhouse of 40 years worth of memories, the thought of sharing the farm, rather than simply producing more, came very clearly to us. In agriculture, the push is to get bigger – bigger farms, more acreage, more animals; but growth for the sake of growth is not always the answer. We recognized a unique opportunity to share the farm, and embraced the chance to welcome guests to share in a uniquely special – and genuine – experience.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

Our entire identity is centered around the idea of welcoming guests to the farm and providing as authentic of a farm experience as possible. Dan is the fourth generation owner/operator of Wegmueller Farms, and embraced the opportunity to pursue agriculture internationally as a college student. Dan studied production farming in Australia, Europe, Central America, and gained a unique environmental perspective studying Marine Ecology on the Great Barrier Reef through the University of Queensland. The mantra of “How we treat our land and environment here, affects everything downwind and downstream” serves as the basis for how we welcome our guests to this active, working dairy farm. Guests are provided a complimentary one-hour farm tour, where we talk about the farm’s history, vision, and outlook. Additionally, guests are welcome to hand-milk a dairy cow, bottle-feed baby calves, meet the resident pigs, ponies, chickens, and horses.
We openly discuss the ethics and morals of how animals are cared for, and guests are welcome to join in veterinary house calls, when available.
Recently we added an equestrian component to our farm experience, where guests are paired with the perfect horse based on experience, confidence, expectations, and personality. With four miles of trails on the farm, seeing the countryside on horseback is the perfect opportunity to discuss land conservation, crop management, and wildlife preservation.
Above all else, an experience on the farm promotes the idea to take a step back and savor the sacred relationship we carry with the land, environment, and animals.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Small-scale agriculture has traditionally been a lucrative pursuit, but in the past five-plus years, Wisconsin has led the nation in farm bankruptcies, and has lost nearly half of its farms. Just prior to this crisis, in April of 2017, we saw the writing on the wall and recognized that economically, times were changing on the farm. No longer would we be able to simply produce a product and expect to receive a livable wage in return.
At the end of the day, we also recognized that small-scale agriculture is far more sustainable morally and ethically than factory farming. This recognition is what encouraged our pivot into ag-tourism, with the simple concept that we could invite guests onto the farm, show them exactly what we do and what we’re about, and send them home with a positive impression of what actually happens in Rural America.

How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?

Funding our diversification into ag-tourism was easily the biggest obstacle we have had to overcome throughout this journey. In 2017, as we were renovating the farmhouse for guests, while also making some much-needed farm improvements, generating capital was absolutely impossible through traditional channels.
What we learned:
Through the USDA and Farm Service Agency, which typically provides capital at lower interest rates, there is no such program in all of the US Federal Government that encourages farms to connect with their customers. Obtaining funding from the USDA was a dead-end.
Through traditional commercial lenders (Banks), there was no model on which to base how successful we would be. In the Midwest, we have been amongst the first farms to diversify our model in this manner. Commercial farm lenders literally told us, “If you were borrowing money to milk 10,000 cows, you’d already have it.”
Since we were pursuing something different, capital came from private investors. Literally, our initial growth was funded by friends who saw our vision and were willing (and able) to cut sizable checks in order to help us out.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://wegmuellerfarm.com
• Instagram: wegmueller_dairy
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/WegsFarm/
• Youtube: @wegmuellerfarm

Image Credits
All Images courtesy of Dan Wegmueller, Wegmueller Farms.