Rooted in Cattle, Grown Through Trust | October 2025

By Cheryl Kepes

Photos courtesy Gerloff Farms

For more than a century, Gerloff Farms has focused on raising quality cattle and building lasting relationships.

Charlie Gerloff tells friends and strangers alike that he’s never had a job a day in his life. The 80-year-old’s unequivocal love for cattle and agriculture is such that running a large cattle operation for decades never seemed like work but instead pure joy.

Charlie’s family looks at his years of devotion to managing Gerloff Farms as simply his life calling. “When it comes to my dad, cattle are his life. It’s all he has ever known,” Charlie’s daughter, Kim Huebler explained.

Gerloff Farms, located in the rolling hills and valleys near Bland, Missouri, is a century farm specializing in Angus, Simmental, and SimAngus seedstock. Established in 1906 by Charlie’s grandparents, Richard and Lena Gerloff, the farming roots have had 119 years to establish.

Century Farm Beginnings

Though today’s operation is thriving, the century farm endured difficult circumstances in its early years. Twenty years after Richard and Lena started their farm consisting of cattle, horses, and grain, Richard contracted tuberculosis. He passed away during the 1920s, leaving Lena and their seven children to run the farm during the Great Depression.

Only one of the seven children, Alfred, chose to eventually take over the operation. Alfred and his wife, Esther, are credited with introducing Angus cattle to Gerloff Farms. In 1957, they purchased five heifers at the East Central Angus Sale. The Angus cattle herd grew through the years, especially when their youngest child, Charlie, took an interest in showing Angus cattle through 4-H.

Charlie’s love for the farm started in childhood and has intensified through the decades. His wife, Rena, along with their children and grandchildren share a passion for raising quality seedstock for commercial cattle producers.

The Gerloff family manages 500 head of Angus, Simmental, and SimAngus cattle stretched over 2,000 acres of pasture and crop ground. Gerloff Farms sells 120 bulls each year, as well as markets 100-plus females.

Family Operation

Gerloff Farms is family owned and operated through and through. Currently, the younger generation of Gerloffs run the day-to-day operations of Gerloff Farms under Charlie’s thoughtful and wise guidance.

Charlie and Rena have three children Lance, Mindi, and Kim, seven grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren with one more on the way. Each member of the family takes on different responsibilities to keep the cattle operation growing and evolving.

Lance along with this wife Becky, as well as their son Dakota and his wife Mackenzie, play an essential role in the business. Additionally, Lance and Becky’s daughter, Olivia, has made a name for herself in the show ring with several champion Angus females.

Charlie and Rena’s daughter, Kim (Huebler) and her husband Scott work daily in the operation. Their children, Grant and Emilee, are actively involved with the farm chores, data entry, and showing cattle at local competitions.

Charlie and Rena’s daughter, Mindi and her children Bryce, Ariana, and Charlie may not be around for the day-to-day operation, but they lend a helping hand when needed and are an integral part of the family.

Innovative Thinking

From his earliest days, Charlie has been an innovative thinker, constantly seeking ways to improve the herd’s performance. “He’s always wanted whatever’s going to improve the operation. He’s always looked to see what’s the next thing coming,” Kim shared.

When difficulties arose through the decades, Charle was quick to adapt. “In the ‘70s, the exotic breeds became popular, and Angus bulls were a little hard to sell. So, in the ‘70s, he expanded his hog operation to help with the farming. And then in the ‘80s, he did some club calf sales,” Kim recalled.

In the ‘90s, he stepped up his focus on the Angus herd. Then in 2014, Charlie added Simmental cattle to the operation. Today the makeup of the herd is split even between Angus and SimAngus genetics.

Herd Management

The Gerloffs utilize AI to infuse fresh genetics into their program. The entire seedstock cow herd is bred via AI and then cleaned up with topnotch herd sires. Gerloff Farms purchases industry leading herd sires to round out their genetic prowess.

Some of the herd sires making the biggest impact on Gerloff Farms’ genetics through the years include Lemmon Newsline, Connealy Power Surge, Hook’s Brillance 37B, and American Eagle 938G (Hook’s Eagle Son). The Gerloffs are excited about the progeny from one of their most recent bull acquisitions, C-3 Next Up J939, as he is one of the leading herd sires in his breed.

A couple of years ago, the Gerloff family started to incorporate ET work into their program. They select donor females from proven cows in their herd. “We figure out which cows do the best in our environment. They are females that have done their job time in and time out, always stuck AI, and are problem-free cows,” Charlie’s grandson, Dakota Gerloff, stated.

Gerloff Farms places an emphasis on fertility and longevity. To make it in the Gerloffs’ herd, cattle must have slick hair, really good feet, and thrive on fescue. It’s taken the Gerloffs years and lots of tough decisions to get their herd to meet a problem-free standard, but they are making big strides. For example, a recent preg check of their spring cows revealed a 95 percent conception rate.

“That’s another reason why customers come back to us. I have had customers who have bought bulls in our sale call me later and say, ‘This is the first time I have ever had 100 percent conception in my cow herd.’ And it is things like that, that make all we do worthwhile,” Dakota shared.

In addition to the registered herd, the Gerloffs run a commercial herd of 100 to 150 head. The calves from the commercial herd are sold at the sale barn, fed out, or sold in the Gerloffs’ annual sale. Some of the commercial cows serve as recips for the Gerloffs’ ET program. Gerloff Farms implants 50 embryos a year.

Friends not Customers

Charlie’s customers and acquaintances through the years grew to expect Charlie to remember them by name and always greet them with a warm smile coupled with a hug or hearty handshake. “We consider all of our customers friends. That’s been my dad’s motto all his life. He doesn’t ever meet a stranger,” Kim shared.

Through all his years, Charlie has modeled the epitome of customer service by the way he treats others and his guarantee on cattle purchases. “Grandpa told me more than once, the cattle that you sell are only as good as how you treat people. We try to help out as much as we can. We stand by our cattle 100 percent. If there is a problem, we try our darnedest to fix it. Customer satisfaction is one the highest priorities in our business,” Dakota said.

Gerloff Farms hosts an annual bull fest and female sale every October. The Gerloffs sell more than 80 bulls, ranging in age from yearlings to 2-year-olds. Their annual sale also includes as many as a hundred female lots, including open and bred heifers as well as bred spring and fall cows.

Bull Development

The family strives to breed balanced seedstock – animals developed for optimum production in challenging environments. Close to 95 percent of the bulls the Gerloffs sell each year, go to cattle producers within a 100-mile radius of Gerloff Farms.

“Our bulls have to be pretty darn tough. If they can survive our environment with fescue and rough terrain, I feel like they can thrive anywhere. For that reason, that is why we have repeat customers who are satisfied with the bulls they purchase from us,” Dakota explained.

The Gerloffs aim to produce bulls that cover all the bases – calving ease, good maternal background, and growth. They take a balanced approach in their breeding program for their bulls and females.

Farm Management

In addition to the cattle operation, the Gerloffs raise and bale their own hay. The crops part of the business focuses on raising feed for their cattle operation. They grow corn and beans, keeping the corn for feed and selling the beans for cash flow. The Gerloffs also produce wheat to bale for hay for their bulls and weaned calves.

Looking Ahead

Charlie’s love for cattle and passion for people emanates brightly through his children and grandchildren. And through good times and tough times, they will lean on Charlie’s words of encouragement. “Grandpa tells us to always have the mentality of if things aren’t going right just have a positive mindset, things are going to be okay. Keep your head up and things will work out,” Dakota said.

The sixth generation of the Gerloff family is now growing up in the family business. The current generations of Gerloffs stand proudly rooted in their agriculture heritage and they are determined to carry Gerloff Farms through another century of success.

18th Annual Sale:

Saturday, October 18, 2025 - 1:00 PM

Gerloff Farms Forum Center, Bland, Mo.

learn more www.gerloff-cattle.com