MERCED, CALIFORNIAFour generations
Hunt Farms has moved through different eras of California agriculture. Each has shaped the farm we are today.
The crops have changed, and so has the work. What carries forward is what each generation learns in the field and passes on to the next.
From cattle to row crops, from almonds to agave, we have kept adapting so the family can keep farming.
The family purchased 3,000 acres already known as Hunt Farms, with family members co-signing the purchase. Cow-calf ranching became a major part of the operation, with four herds: Beefmaster, Black Angus, Red Angus, and a mixed herd known as the “rainbow” herd.
Alongside farming and cattle on the home ranch, the family leased several thousand additional acres for grazing. Working the ground and caring for livestock were both part of daily life.
Beginning in 1995, the farm gradually sold its cattle and gave up grazing leases as corn and alfalfa became a larger part of the business. The operation included 500 acres of alfalfa. Within five years, the cattle herds had been sold and farming centered on 2,400 acres of family land. Around 500 acres a year were rented to tomato growers, rotating with the farm’s own crops.
A 600-acre parcel known as the Smith property became the setting for another chapter. Almond planting began in 1998, with 200 acres established over six years. The remaining ground supported grain crops and natural pasture leased for cattle grazing.
Father and son continued the farming operation by renting land from the family and working additional leased ground. Knowledge of the fields, equipment, and irrigation carried forward through the everyday work.
Woolf Farming leased 1,124 acres of the main family ranch, marking another change in how the land was farmed.
Now a fourth-generation family farm, Hunt Farms is entering a new era focused on planting agave. We are learning what works on our ground, helping growers develop practical planting plans, and developing a farm school to share that knowledge.