Beginning Farmer

Originally from Scotland, Neil Blair came to the coal mining town of Lehigh, Iowa in the 1800's to work in the coal mines.  He had three children; Neil, Jim, and Sara.

Born in 1882, Neil Blair (the second) purchased a farm north west of Dayton, Iowa in 1907.  By working hard, he added land and built a reputation for his cattle. 

Modernization

Neil's son Donald Blair was the next generation to farm.  He grew the farm through many changes in production including the addition of soybeans as a cash crop and the end of cattle production.  Donald was married to Marge and had 4 children; Donald (Guy), Neil, Kelly, and Jane.

International Expansion

Donald's son Kelly Blair studied Animal Science at Iowa State University and graduated in 1978.  Contract production of pigs brought livestock back to the farm.  In 1996 the Blair farm restructured their business into KR Farm Inc.  KR stands for Kelly and Rebecca Blair.  2002 marked the purchase of a farm in Bahia state in Brazil.  Two partners, a farm family from Colorado, and a farm family from Ontario, Canada, along with the Blair family formed Prairie Cerrado LLC.  Prairie Cerrado signifies the move from the prairies of North America to the Cerrado region in South America.  Kelly and Rebecca have two sons; A.J. and Patrick.

Today

A.J. and Kellie Blair currently operate the farm today.  They changed the name of KR (Kelly and Rebecca) to include A.J. and Kellie and is now AKR (A.J., Kellie, Kelly, and Rebecca) Farm.  The farm includes raising pigs, cattle (beef and cow/calf), and row crops.  A.J. and Kellie have two kids: Wyatt and Charlotte.  We are excited about the future of AKR Farm, Inc.