Cotter Farms in Minnesota: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Cotter Farms in Mower County, Minnesota, run by Tom Cotter, received the 2025 Minnesota Leopold Conservation Award from the Sand County Foundation. The farm covers 850 acres, all grazed by cow-calf pairs, with about 40 percent organic and the rest managed with regenerative practices. In 2016 it became the first farm in Mower County certified in the Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality program.
| Location | Austin area, Mower County, Minnesota |
|---|---|
| Founded | Multi-generation family farm; Tom and his father Mike began soil health changes in the late 1990s |
| Sectors | Cow-calf grazing; corn, soybeans, sweet corn, sunflowers, peas, oats, alfalfa; cover crop seed; hemp |
| Scale | 850 acres, all grazed by cow-calf pairs; about 40 percent organic (Sand County Foundation) |
| Why it is elite | 2025 Minnesota Leopold Conservation Award; first Mower County farm certified in the state water quality program in 2016 |
| Ownership | Family-owned by Tom Cotter, who farmed with his father Mike |
| Official website | Leopold Conservation Award profile (no operation website found) |
History of Cotter Farms
According to the Sand County Foundation, Tom and his father Mike made a soil health discovery in the late 1990s after Mike bought a tile plow. Soil four feet down was poor, smelled bad and had no earthworms. The Cotters spent about a decade experimenting with cereal rye cover crops.
In 2015 Tom moved to reduced tillage and connected with like-minded farmers. In 2016 the farm became the first in Mower County certified as a Minnesota Agricultural Water Quality Farm. It later switched from feedlot beef cattle to grazing cow-calf pairs across the whole farm and became a regional teaching site.
What Cotter Farms Grows and Raises
The rotation includes corn, soybeans, sweet corn, sunflowers, peas, oats and alfalfa, with diverse cover crop mixes that are uncommon in Minnesota. The farm uses no-till, interseeds cover crops into standing cash crops to extend their growing season, and uses roller-crimpers to terminate covers without herbicides. Livestock graze the cover crops.
No-till required equipment changes and different planting dates. The farm also took part in a multi-year demonstration using soil sensors to measure soil temperature and water infiltration. Tom mentors other farmers on cover crops, erosion control and soil biodiversity.
How Cotter Farms Makes Money
Cow-calf and grazing
Switching from feedlot cattle to grazing cow-calf pairs across all 850 acres turned livestock into a way to cycle nutrients through the cropland while keeping the soil covered.
Cover crop seed mixes
The Sand County Foundation says the farm sells cover crop seed mixes as an additional revenue stream, building on a decade of its own trial-and-error.
Hemp and specialty crops
Cotter was an early adopter of hemp in Minnesota and uses on-farm processing equipment to produce CBD oil, alongside sweet corn, peas and sunflowers. The farm also hosts visitors, including farmers, students, researchers and food company staff.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Cotter Farms
One lesson is to adopt practices in stages. The Cotters took about a decade with cereal rye and a few more years to reach reduced tillage, and the stages let them test equipment and timing before committing the whole farm.
Another is to turn expertise into a service. Cover crop seed mixes, field days and mentoring all create value from knowledge gained on the farm. Check local rules before adding on-farm processing or hosting visitors.
A farm that found its soil problem four feet down with a tile plow and an unhappy nose has earned a good story. Take a break from roller-crimpers and visit farm.FM for farm satire, farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes, including affectionate ribbing about Mower County sweet corn, cover crop mix recipes and the neighbor who still asks if you plan to plow it.
farm.FM calls itself the nation's first satirical farm site, and between the headlines it spins Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers; a good place to start reading is this farm.FM columnist's archive.
How to Contact Cotter Farms
Website: https://sandcountyfoundation.org/our-work/leopold-conservation-award-program/tom-cotter
No official website, address or phone was found for the operation, so this links to the Sand County Foundation award profile, November 2026. The Land Stewardship Project has hosted field days at the farm.
Cotter Farms Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Leopold Conservation Award profile - Sand County Foundation page for the 2025 recipient
- Award announcement - Sand County Foundation news release
- Agweek coverage - News report on the Leopold award
- Land Stewardship Project field day - Cover crop field day on the farm
- USDA Census of Agriculture - Farm and organic data from NASS
Cotter Farms FAQ
Where is Cotter Farms?
It is in Mower County near Austin, Minnesota.
What award did Cotter Farms win?
Tom Cotter received the 2025 Minnesota Leopold Conservation Award.
How large is the farm?
The Sand County Foundation reports 850 acres, all grazed by cow-calf pairs.
Is Cotter Farms organic?
About 40 percent of the acreage is organic, and the rest uses regenerative practices.
Cotter Farms shows how a southeast Minnesota family built an award-winning system on cover crops, grazing and specialty enterprises. To see how it fits with the state's other leading operations and programs, read the Minnesota farms guide.