Mike Paustian

Mike is a sixth-generation farmer and a scientist from Walcott, Iowa. He spent his early career obtaining a PhD and then working at the National Animal Disease Center before moving back to his family farm to operate the farm with his parents, wife, and kids. The farm consists of corn, soybeans, and farrow-to-finish hogs.

Starting around 2015, Mike has used cover crops and no-till on every acre. Most of the farm’s conservation practices started as trials and then grew. Mike stated they are not just doing conservation practices for the sake of doing them. They are constantly asking, “Is this better than what we did before?” He is routinely experimenting and making changes based on results to maintain or increase productivity.

Building a Culture of Conservation: 

“Not everyone needs to learn lessons the hard way. I hope producers have enough foresight to take advantage of the time we have now to start trying to figure things out. We all need to have a sense of urgency.”

Contact Information

Mike Paustian
6520 215th St.
Walcott, IA 52763
563-447-0657
mike.paustian@gmail.com