The profit to be earned through direct sales looks promising, Larson said, given the area's high population base and his own low production costs. To keep production costs down, and to keep beef as lean as possible, Larson feeds his cattle mainly on forages. Trefoil, clover, and bromegrass grow in his pastures. Cattle are rotated through the paddocks, moving into a new one every two days. Cows and calves are in one herd, yearling and two-year old steers in another.
Heifers are in a third group nearby.
Larson puts up hay from 30 acres in big round bales. He also hays some of the paddocks that produce more grass than the cows are able to eat. The balance of the farm's land base is cropland which he rents to a neighbor. Sweet Corn Silage Hay is fed to the cows in winter, though the lion's share of their diet is made up of sweet corn silage. A waste product from nearby sweet corn canneries, the silage is made from husks and cobs.