Riddell Farms – I am Oregon Agriculture

Anissa (Riddell) Branch, and son Dylan Branch. David & Christy Riddell (not pictured), along with Anissa & Dylan are the three generations of Riddell Farms, Inc.

I am Oregon agriculture.

My name is Anissa Branch and our 4^th generation family farm grows grass seed, wheat, oats, straw and hazelnuts in the Willamette Valley of Oregon. My great-grandfather started our farm raising sheep and wheat over 80 years ago. I have many memories as a child of my father every February in the lambing barn with the ewes and every summer harvesting the crop. One of my fondest memories is watching my grandfather herd the flock with his well-trained Border Collie dogs. A lot has changed over the years.  The sheep and my grandfather are gone and we just recently started growing wheat again after a 20 year absence.

One of our oat fields at Riddell Farms.

My father has grown our once 1,000 acre farm to over 5,000 harvestable acres. He has also helped expand our customer base considerably. We now ship our products all over the US as well as most of Asia. You can find our grass seed on a lawn in Tennessee as well as a golf course in Japan. Our wheat is enjoyed in the noodles sold in China & Korea, and our straw and oats can be found being fed to cattle almost anywhere in Asia. After many years away from the farm and living in a big city, coming back to work on the family farm makes me appreciate it so much more. My children, the next generation on this farm, are learning new technology that will improve the way future farming is done. It is an exciting and rewarding process to watch.

Stacking straw at Riddell Farms during harvest time.

Growing and harvesting products for the world to consume is a wonderful feeling and sharing how vital Oregon agriculture is and how our Ag products impact the world is my passion.