Kelly Johnson, a specialty producer in South Dakota (SD), will share her and her family’s journey of growth and innovation at the SD State Fair Value-Added Agriculture Day located at the Day Sponsor Tent, September 3, from 12:00-12:30 pm. She will be discussing how her operation, Farm Mom Phenom, as well as her family’s operation, TLCK Farm, has benefited from multiple conservation contracts through the United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), helping them expand both specialty and grain production.

Kelly’s first NRCS Environmental Quality Incentives Program (EQIP) contract in 2023 enabled the installation of a high tunnel, boosting her specialty crop output. A second EQIP contract in 2025 focused on further infrastructure improvements, including low tunnel systems for raised beds and new tree belts to protect her gardens from wind. “Support the NRCS has provided our farm has not only widened our understanding of conservation practices, but it has also propelled us forward to build a larger scale, more effective operation,” said Kelly.

In addition, Kelly and her husband Curtis recently entered the Regenerative Pilot Program’s Conservation Stewardship Program, targeting grain production improvements. The planned conservation efforts include introducing small grain and cover crop rotations, adopting variable rate fertilizer applications, and planting field borders to combat erosion and compaction. Through Farm Service Agency, the Johnsons have enrolled some land into the Grassland Conservation Reserve Program (CRP). Kelly’s commercial kitchen project, funded through SD Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources and USDA’s Agricultural Marketing Service, is also in progress which will support her value-added goods business. For more information on USDA services available, contact your local USDA Service Center.

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