Annual Oconto County Breakfast on the Farm ready to roll

Alsteen Farms to host breakfast for 5,000 Sunday
By: 
NEW Media Staff

Among the highlights of any summer is the Oconto County Breakfast on the Farm, which has been known to feed as many as 5,000 visitors in five hours.

This year’s host is Alsteen Farms LLC, 9399 Belgian Road, Lena. Breakfast is scheduled to be served from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, June 13.

The menu is scrambled eggs with cheese and ham, pancakes, sausages, yogurt, apple sauce, cheese, milk, orange juice, ice cream, coffee and water, all for $8 per guest. Live music, antique demonstrations and children’s activities are also to be part of the mix.

Alsteen Farms was originally slated to host the 2020 Breakfast on the Farm, but the event was canceled because of COVID-19 pandemic concerns. The dairy was established in 1900 and then purchased in 1959 by Harvey and Marian Alsteen.

The Alsteens raised their three sons – Dave, Mike and Dan – on the farm. In 1993, Mike, his wife, Pam, and their three children – Colby, Courtney and Carolyn – purchased the farm, which at that time consisted of 85 cows and 400 acres.

The farm has continued to grow and adapt to new technology, and today the dairy milks 500 cows twice a day. The 85-stall stanchion barn was retrofitted into a double 10 parallel parlor in 1998. With cow comfort in mind, the free-stall barn has mattresses that are bedded with straw and sawdust and is equipped with sprinklers, fans and cow brushes.

The Alsteens’ acreage has also increased, now farming 1,800 acres of corn, soybeans, alfalfa and wheat with nine full-time, three part-time and seasonal employees.

Tickets can be purchased at the farm or in advance at Lena Fast Stop; NEW Credit Union branches in Oconto, Oconto Falls and Suring; or Peshtigo National Bank branches in Coleman, Oconto Falls and Gillett.