When Kari Olson was just a little girl hanging out with her dad in the combine and following him or her grandpa around the farm near Hawley, she probably never envisioned that two decades later she would still be running around the farm, but it would be her in the driver’s seat and that the farm would be her own.

Yet here she is.

Becoming a farmer was never a profession that was pushed on Olson while growing up. Instead, her parents encouraged Kari and her sister to play sports, get involved with extra curriculars and just be kids. Of course, it was also understood the Olson kids would help out around the farm.

“I still spent my summers in the bins and running grain cart whenever we had time,” Olson said. “My dad wanted to make sure it was a place I wanted to be and not a place I had to be.”

At the advice of her dad, Rob, Kari headed off to college at North Dakota State University in search of a career off the farm, yet still in the field of agriculture. But during her freshman year in 2015, an opportunity from a forward-thinking landowner from down the road gave Olson her taste of becoming a full-time farmer.

“I was approached by an area landowner who wanted to rent his 100-acre piece of land to a young farmer,” she said. “I wasn’t expecting to start farming that young, but I had the support from my dad so that I could keep going to school and farm at the same time.”

A few years later, Kari’s father had a health scare, and it quickly became evident that she may be stepping into a more involved role on the farm. Thankfully, her sister selflessly opted to quit her job as a teacher to help run the farm while Kari finished school before committing to full-time farming. She began the transition by taking over the rented, non-family land. In 2022, she took ownership of the rest of the operation.

Olson faced a steep learning curve in becoming a fourth-generation farmer. One of the biggest challenges was figuring out the finances.

“It’s a lot of money to deal with. A lot goes in, and a lot comes back out. I watched my friends graduate college, get health insurance and biweekly paychecks,” she said. “I remember going out with my friends and not ordering anything and when they wondered why I had to explain to them it’s because I have to pay interest on that, because I won’t see any income for several months.”

After moving back to Hawley and taking over the farm, Olson joined the Clay-Wilkin Soybean & Corn Growers Association, where she currently serves as secretary, as a way to get involved in the community and build a network of fellow local farmers.

“It’s been a fun organization to be a part of because it gives me an opportunity to get off the farm and expand my network, but also still be involved in supporting agriculture,” said Olson, who also became a member of the Minnesota Soybean Growers Association (MSGA).

Olson is already making an impact on her county board.

“Kari is young, energetic and among a small group of active women farmers in the area, but she is highly respected among her peers,” said Clay-Wilkin County Soybean & Corn Growers President Jeremy Tischer, who represents the county board on MSGA. “Her farming practices are unique for this region, but she’s an early adapter and other producers are now looking up to her as they begin following the trends in agriculture.”

Never Till

Olson’s soybean, corn and wheat operation is unique for its location in the Red River Valley in that it’s a completely no-till operation. After gradually seeing the soil get depleted from decades of plowing, Rob Olson made the conscious decision to rethink how they do tillage. He purchased their first no-till drill in 2004 and that fall harvested one of their best crops to date. They then slowly made the transition to becoming a full-on, no-till operation.

“I’ve never actually tilled a field, and I honestly thought that was normal because it’s all I’ve ever known,” Kari said. “But it’s worked for me and been very profitable so I plan to continue it.”

And Kari just recently added what might be the final piece to complete the regenerative agriculture puzzle on her farm. Olson brought in some cattle, which will graze on the fields after harvest and add some soil fertility back into the soil. And while raising and grazing cattle is more of an old-school method, she’s also very interested in adopting new technology opportunities to enhance her conservation practices as well.

“I’m really intrigued by drones, especially with all the cover crops we’re doing,” said Olson. “Right now, we’re using airplanes to get cover crops planted into soybeans and corn, but the drones could potentially be more effective and assist with spraying, too.”

But all the steps Olson is taking to improve soil health aren’t just for her own benefit. She’s already thinking about the next generation, such as her niece or nephew, who like to spend time with her on the farm.

“At a very young age, they are already very knowledgeable of soil health and farming in general. They’re where my drive for practicing good conservation comes from,” Olson said. “The generations before me did their best to make sure the land I had to farm was suitable and I want to do my part for the next generation as well.”