Today we’d like to introduce you to Karen Scalf. Them and their team share their story with us below:
In the upper part of Duplin County, North Carolina, and tucked next to the bottomlands of Goshen Swamp, Kornegay Hereford Farms has continued the 1949 heritage of producing rich foods from the land. The red and white Hereford cattle have always been the legacy of this family farm since Cecil and Jean Kornegay began raising their four children, including daughter Karen [Kornegay] Scalf.
The Herefords from England are a heritage cattle breed that has always been known for their flavor, tenderness, and efficiency on grass. The gentleness of the breed is an understatement and is quite evident in the memorable photograph of the found Cecil Kornegay with his beloved bull KHF Mr. Dynamite. Continuing his love of the Hereford breed, Karen, along with her husband Gary, have continued the Hereford farm. Raising their three children on the farm has taught their family the value of healthy foods.
The family is using regenerative agriculture methods to sustain the farm beyond the next generation and reach future farmers through their internship program with the University of Mt. Olive Agriculture and Biological Science Program.
Active in the local community by supporting the state’s motto of “It’s got to be North Carolina Agriculture”, all cattle are born and raised on the farm and processed through a local plant right here in North Carolina. Believing that Hereford is the best tasting “Holy Cow”, KHFarms is now selling directly to the consumer through an expanded market. Farm-raised and always antibiotic, chemical, and hormone-free, KHFarms Hereford beef is straight from the Scalf family farm to your table.
Like any normal American family, The Scalfs work hard and play hard. If they aren’t coming, they are going. And with 2 young adults and 1 teenager, life can get pretty busy. But to make KHFarms successful, each member of the family shares a passion to continue the family farm and share the love of farming with others.KHFarms is proud to be a female-owned farm as Karen Scalf is the Chief FarmHER and CEO. She handles all of the breeding and management of the cattle herds. She is also a fierce mama bear and an involved community member.
When not tending to the cows, visiting the hogs, checking on the chickens, or making sure everyone has something for supper, she sits on the Duplin County Farm Bureau Board of Directors (20+ years and still going!), was the Vice-President of the Duplin County Cattleman’s Association, and continues as an agrarian advocate for regenerative farming and building stronger farm families and communities.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Being a FarmHER has not always been easy. When Karen and Gary first started running the farm we did what we have always done. We farmed using over-tilling and cultivating, spraying pesticides, using chemicals, and just generally abusing the land which we have since learned was abusive to our herd as well.
After being inspired by the Soil Health Academy here in Duplin County, Karen and Gary decided to transition the farm to a regenerative one, farming and ranching in harmony with nature. Karen’s decision to go against the grain and become a regenerative advocate did not earn her many fans in a traditional farming community. She was accused of being radical, difficult to work with, and unrealistic even.
Through the years Karen has also learned that being on a small farm means working within the parameters of federal agencies and guidelines. These are the sort of rules not created for small farms and sometimes make it incredibly difficult to even make a living wage.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
Karen Scalf is more than a farmer. She is a daughter, a wife, a mother, a sister, and a community member-at-large. Everything she does is to provide a better world and better health for herself, her family, and her community.
Karen is most proud of sticking to her guns even when it made more sense to give up and farm traditionally. Because of her passion for being a steward of God’s land and creatures, she continues to advocate on the part of small family farms and the environment on the whole.
What would you say has been one of the most important lessons you’ve learned?
Prayer. It works. It is like soil. If you invest in it, it will reward you. Sometimes it won’t reward you just the way you want but rather it will reward you with more bounty than you could have ever imagined for yourself.
Contact Info:
- Email: info@khfarms.site
- Website: www.khfarms.site
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/KHFarms
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kornegayhereford
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1uv70NvFcII
Image Credits
KHFarms
