Raising hogs is a family operation for Tim Gretter

HARPER — Tim Gretter is a contract grower for Eichelberger Farms and a row crop farmer near Harper.

He owns two 2,400 head barns and is on group number 73. This means roughly 182,500 head of hogs have been marketed from his barns since he began.

Growing up, Gretter and his father ran a small-scale farrow to finish operation and he knew from the start that working with pigs would be a good fit for him.

Gretter graduated from Kirkwood with an Applied Science degree in 2001. He built his barns and started feeding for EFI in 2002.

His favorite part about being a pig farmer is having the opportunity to work in the barns with his family.

His wife Naomi is enthusiastic about helping load market hogs during the middle of the night.

Gretter has three children — Blake, Bailey, and Becca. Blake is 14 years old and has begun to help on the farm as well as loading market hogs. Bailey is 13 years old and Becca is 11. All of them enjoy starting the little pigs. When it comes to vaccinating time, it’s a family affair!

Gretter vividly recalled a memory of his daughter Bailey at 5 years old, who was helping him put a new gate post in.

“She was holding a socket with the breaker bar through the slat swinging it back and forth when I heard a kerplunk … followed by, ‘Uh oh, Dad,’” he said. “I looked over and saw her kneeling down looking through the slats trying to find the breaker bar. I told her, ‘At least you saved the socket.’”

Gretter’s least favorite part about being a pig farmer is that it is hard to get away. Pigs need to be cared for 365 days of the year and someone needs to be around to do chores or in case something breaks.

Outside of farming, the Gretter family is always on the run.

Naomi is the owner of a mobile coffee truck and a schoolteacher at Keota. His kids attend Keota and stay busy with school activities.

Gretter enjoys farming, hunting, watching his kids’ activities, and playing cards.

Eichelberger Farms is thankful for growers like Tim Gretter who display passion and ownership in their responsibilities as a caretaker.