Dahlager-Schwindt Farm in Minnesota: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It
Profile updated November 2026
Dahlager-Schwindt Farm near Sacred Heart, Minnesota, is a partnership of Rick Schwindt and Sam Dahlager that farms about 2,000 acres of corn, soybeans and sugar beets and is a member of the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative. The figures here come from an Agweek cover story published in the late 2000s and may have changed since.
| Location | Sacred Heart, Minnesota, about 14 miles west of the co-op plant in Renville |
|---|---|
| Founded | Rick Schwindt began farming there in 1986; the partnership entered sugar beets in 1999 |
| Sectors | Sugar beets; corn; soybeans |
| Scale | About 2,000 acres, with 250 acres of beet shares at the time of the Agweek profile |
| Why it is notable | Agweek cover story profile; shareholder in a farmer-owned sugar beet cooperative formed in 1972 |
| Ownership | Partnership of Rick Schwindt and Sam Dahlager |
| Official website | Agweek cover story on the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative grower |
History of Dahlager-Schwindt Farm
Rick Schwindt grew up around sugar beets, silage corn and pinto beans near Fort Collins, Colorado, according to Agweek. He and his wife Sheri, whose father Gale Dahlager farmed in Sacred Heart, returned to Minnesota and started farming in 1986.
The partnership with Sheri's uncle Sam Dahlager bought into sugar beets in 1999, starting with 80 acres of shares at $1,250 per share, then buying the rest of its acreage the next year. The Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative, which formed in 1972, had about 585 farmer shareholders at the time of the profile.
What Dahlager-Schwindt Farm Grows and Raises
Beets are grown in a four- to five-year rotation with corn and soybeans on mostly loam soils. Agweek reported planting beets in mid-April, with corn and soybeans following, and 2008 beet yields of about 22 to 24 tons per acre with sugar content often a full percentage point above average. The farm switched to Roundup Ready crops in the year of the profile and tried starter fertilizer on beets and corn.
Equipment is shared. The partnership has one lifter, one topper and two semis, and shares them with Johnson Seed Farm about five miles away, which has two semis of its own. Harvest usually takes about two weeks, and the two farms alternate day and night shifts. Minnesota Farm Bureau reports that Minnesota had 434,000 planted sugarbeet acres, about 11 million tons and roughly 3,500 farms in 2022, so this partnership works within one of the state's best-known crops.
How Dahlager-Schwindt Farm Makes Money
Sugar beets through the co-op
Beets are delivered to the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative in Renville. Minnesota Farm Bureau says sugarbeet farmers are paid based on the pounds of sugar they deliver, and Agweek described the co-op shifting toward paying on sugar content rather than tonnage.
Corn and soybeans
Corn and soybeans fill the remainder of the roughly 2,000 acres and rotate with beets. The article does not describe marketing channels, prices or yields for these crops.
Shared equipment
Splitting lifters, toppers and trucks with a neighboring farm lowers per-acre machinery cost during the compressed harvest. Sharing is a cost strategy rather than a revenue stream, but it is central to how the partnership manages margins.
Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Dahlager-Schwindt Farm
First, sugar beet acreage is tied to co-op shares. The partnership grew its beet acres by buying shares, then leasing more through a joint venture, and a rotation that includes corn and soybeans keeps the crop mix balanced.
Second, cooperation extends beyond the processing plant. Sharing equipment and alternating harvest shifts with a nearby farm lets two partnerships operate a compressed harvest without duplicating the full machine line.
Anyone who has seen the beet harvest knows the fields turn into a round-the-clock operation with trucks, headlights and coffee, and Sacred Heart is no exception. When the last beet is piled, visit farm.FM for farm satire, farm humor, ranch humor and farm jokes, including affectionate teasing about shared semis, two-week harvests and the neighbor who never returns the topper on time.
For context, farm.FM is the nation's first satirical farm site and the home of Tractor Tunes, country music for farmers. Its contributors each keep an archive, and this one is a good sampler of ranch humor and farm jokes.
How to Contact Dahlager-Schwindt Farm
Website: https://www.agweek.com/news/cover-story-southern-minnesota-beet-co-op-grower-shoots-for-sugar
No official website or public business contact details for the operation were found, so this links to an Agweek profile, November 2026. Figures date from the late 2000s and may have changed.
Dahlager-Schwindt Farm Sources and Agriculture Authority Links
- Agweek: Southern Minnesota Beet co-op grower - Profile of the Sacred Heart partnership
- Minnesota Farm Bureau: sugarbeet farming - Statewide sugarbeet acreage, tons and payment basis
- Minnesota Department of Agriculture profile - State agriculture facts and figures
- USDA NASS Quick Stats - County and state sugarbeet, corn and soybean data
- USDA Census of Agriculture - National farm statistics from USDA NASS
Dahlager-Schwindt Farm FAQ
Where is Dahlager-Schwindt Farm?
It is near Sacred Heart, Minnesota, about 14 miles west of the Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative plant in Renville.
What does it grow?
Sugar beets, corn and soybeans on about 2,000 acres, as reported by Agweek.
Is the profile current?
The Agweek story dates from the late 2000s, so acreage and equipment may have changed.
How do I contact the farm?
No official website or business contact details were found. The Agweek profile is the best verified reference.
Dahlager-Schwindt Farm shows how a southwest Minnesota partnership uses co-op shares, rotation and shared equipment to run sugar beets. To compare it with other leading operations, read the Minnesota farms guide.