Dakota Layers in South Dakota: History, What It Raises, How It Makes Money and How to Contact It

Profile updated November 2026

Dakota Layers is a family-owned egg farm in Flandreau, South Dakota, described by Farm Progress as one of the state's largest egg producers. It houses roughly 1.3 million hens in nine facilities and was reported as the first farm in North America to reach 500 eggs per hen housed over a 100-week cycle.

History of Dakota Layers

Dakota Layers is a family operation in the Big Sioux River country of eastern South Dakota. Public sources do not give a founding year, but they do show a steady history of investment. By 2015 the farm was building its own pullet barns, about 10 miles from its laying barns and egg processing center, after a contract with an outside chick supplier ended. A South Dakota Development Corporation loan backed by the Small Business Administration 504 program helped finance the barns.

The same year brought the biggest setback in the farm's public record. In May 2015 highly pathogenic avian influenza killed the entire flock of 1.3 million hens. The state economic development office said at the time that it was confident the farm would come back stronger, and the farm rebuilt. Avian influenza returned in late 2022, when more than 1.2 million hens were euthanized, and by February 2024 a regional newspaper reported that the farm was fully repopulated with birds for the first time since December 2022.

Jason Ramsdell, a second-generation egg farmer and sixth-generation farmer who joined full time in 2012, serves as general manager, and his wife Tracy leads marketing and communications.

What Dakota Layers Grows and Raises

The operation is built around laying hens housed in nine facilities, with automated feeding, watering, egg collection and manure removal systems described in trade coverage. Its own pullet facility, built in 2015, raises young birds to laying age so that the farm controls the start of its flock rather than depending on outside suppliers.

Flock performance is the headline. A 2020s trade report said one of its flocks reached 500 eggs per hen housed in 100 weeks, compared with a standard cycle of about 95 weeks. Reaching that number takes feed, genetics, house climate control, health management and careful handling, and it reflects the discipline a layer business needs.

Biosecurity is now part of daily management. After two outbreaks, the farm has told local media that rebuilding and protecting the flock has been challenging and costly, and that it remains on high alert during migration seasons.

How Dakota Layers Makes Money

Shell egg sales

The core business is selling eggs from its laying flock. The farm's public materials mention sales within the counties around it, and a farm of this scale also depends on the broader egg market, though the sources reviewed do not list its customers.

Pullet raising

Raising its own pullets turns a cost of buying birds from others into an in-house stage of production. The 2015 financing for the pullet barns shows the farm treats flock supply as a strategic investment.

Community and brand building

The farm gives five percent of local sales in each county to food pantries or charities, and in 2018 it donated more than 17,000 eggs to Feeding South Dakota. In 2022 it tied egg donations to SDSU basketball free throws. These gifts support its local brand as a good neighbor without being a revenue stream themselves.

Farm Insight: What Other Operators Can Learn from Dakota Layers

First, vertical integration pays when supply is fragile. When its chick contract ended, Dakota Layers built pullet barns instead of looking for another supplier, which gave it control over flock age and health.

Second, disease risk is a business risk. The farm lost its flock twice in a decade and still rebuilt, with public financing and a disciplined biosecurity plan. Livestock operators of any size should write down their response plan, know their lenders and insurance, and consider state and federal indemnity and recovery programs before an emergency, not after one.

How to Contact Dakota Layers

Dakota Layers Sources and Agriculture Authority Links

• Dakota Layers official site - The farm's own website
• 500 egg milestone report - Trade coverage of the flock record and farm scale
• Farm Progress on the pullet barn expansion - 2015 report on expansion and avian flu recovery
• Moody County Enterprise on flock recovery - February 2024 local news on repopulation
• USDA Census of Agriculture - National and state farm statistics from NASS

Dakota Layers FAQ

Where is Dakota Layers located?

It is a family egg farm in Flandreau, in eastern South Dakota.

How many hens does Dakota Layers have?

Trade coverage describes about 1.3 million hens housed in nine facilities.

Has Dakota Layers been affected by bird flu?

Yes. Highly pathogenic avian influenza hit the farm in May 2015 and again in late 2022, and a February 2024 report said it was fully repopulated.

How can I contact Dakota Layers?

Use the contact options on its official website, dakotalayers.com.

Dakota Layers is a strong example of how a family egg business scales, recovers from disease and stays tied to its community. To see more of the state's top operations and the wider context, read the South Dakota farms guide linked from this page.