About MATT MORELAND

Matt is a fourth generation farmer from western Missouri near Kansas City. Growing up on a dairy farm he learned how to work from a young age. Helping out bottle feeding calves in grade school, then moving to milking as a young teenager and finally being promoted to planting, hay crew and harvest duties in high school he learned that the there was always something to do on the farm. After receiving an agriculture engineering degree from the University of Missouri, Matt headed back to the farm to rejoin his father and uncle and become a part of the family business. Shortly after returning home, the dairy economy began to struggle, especially in a location with very few dairy's, making it very hard to make ends meet. With the writing on the wall of the not too optimistic future of milking cows, Matt decided to experiment with new ideas. He started a small pumpkin patch at his home in 2013 to try his hand at specialty crop production and agritourism. The new business, named Red Barn Ranch, stayed very small for the first few years. In December of 2018 the Moreland Family Farm decided it was time to hung up the milk towel and sell the dairy cattle. After 75 years in the milking business it was time for a change. With a lot less on his plate, Matt focused that new found time energy on growing the pumpkin patch business. The changes made paid off and attendance soared. The business expanded in every direction and even found a place merging with the family business. Matt and his family always raised a few Angus cattle over the years but after the dairy cattle were sold off, they decided up that number of mamma cows they raised and turn the milk barn into a feedlot to finish fat steers. Red Barn Ranch brought customers in from neighboring urban towns that wanted to connect with a farmer and buy direct. This created a new market for nearly 100% the steers raised directly to customers and the local community. Red Barn Ranch also began to increase its offerings to its customers as well. Adding sunflowers, more and more varieties of pumpkins, Christmas trees, farm tours, a large on farm full year preschool program, weddings, private events and much more. In addition to the direct marketing beef cattle, the family farm raises all of the feed needed to raise their cattle on the farm and have also found success in growing non-GMO soybeans for the human consumption market in Asia.

Outside of farming and running an agritourism business, Matt is a father of 2 and active member of his community. He takes advantage of ever opportunity available to share his passion for agriculture.