It was my sincere pleasure to talk to one of the cattle industry's great people today, Larry Gran with Jorgensen Land & Cattle Company!  Larry Gran was as enjoyable as he was educational!  Larry is a self-professed “worn-out cowboy”, but there is still a lot of work left in this cowboy!

Larry Gran is an experienced Specialist with a demonstrated history of working in the pharmaceutical industry. Skilled in Negotiation, Business Planning, Market Planning, Sales, and Sales Operations. Strong professional with a B.S. focused on Ag Economics from the University of Wyoming.

Larry provides insight into the United States' largest Seedstock producer’s philosophy on genetic excellence!

History 

The Jorgensen operation began in 1909 when Martin Jorgensen, Sr. and his wife Gertrude homesteaded land near Ideal, South Dakota.

Nearly 50 years later, his son Martin Jorgensen Jr. adopted the pioneering beef cattle performance breeding concepts of the late Dr. Jay Lush (Iowa State University). By the 1960s, the Jorgensen’s performance-based, line-breeding program had established their herd as “the source” for performance beef cattle genetics in the U.S. Today, the 3rd- and 4th-generations of the Jorgensen family continue the legacy of innovation through farming and cattle operations. We remain at the forefront of performance measurement, genetic analysis, and conservation. As a result, cattlemen, farmers, and hunters continue to look to “the source.”

Over the past 100 years, we’ve grown from a family homestead to an operation known nationwide for its superior Angus herd, excellent certified seed, being a leader in soil health, and prime pheasant hunting. But don’t let our 12,000 acres fool you. We’re proud to remain a family operation rooted in a tradition of excellence and innovation.

Martin Jorgensen

Martin F. Jorgensen, Jr. was a pioneer. He once told an interviewer, “I’ve never liked tradition for tradition’s sake, nor have I feared new approaches.” Martin was always searching for a better way to do things and was not afraid to swim upstream if he was convinced that was what needed to be done.

Always analytical, Martin’s analysis of his own commercial cattle operation in the 50s was that he had been doing things the way most ranchers did — producing good but average cows that produced good but average calves, and “average” wasn’t good enough for Martin. Since he couldn’t find the kind of bulls that would do what he wanted bulls to do, he decided to make bulls that would improve commercial cattle herds. He purchased some high-quality registered cows, consulted with the leading geneticists who understood what needed to change, and was determined to produce the kind of bulls he had wanted to use in his commercial herd.

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