As small family farms disappear nationwide, this Fulton cattle farm is beating the odds
By Casey Bennett
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FULTON (KOMU) — Lorenzo Powell and his grandfather, Don Glover, are keeping their over century and a half family tradition of cattle farming going.
“The way I see it is nobody’s going to stop eating hamburgers, so cows are always going to be in demand,” Powell said.
Powell’s fondness for his family Fulton cattle farm has been around as long as he can remember.
“Ever since I was maybe 2 or 3 years old when I was old enough to say cow, that’s the only thing I was crazy about, wanting to be with my grandfather on the farm with the cows,” Powell said.
This love was instilled in him by his grandfather. The two of them still work on the farm together today. While Glover is in his 80s, he says the farm keeps him young.
“This is my pharmacy out here, what little work I do,” Glover said. “The exercise I get beats bad medicines for pains and arthritis and what have you.”
While the duo has a farm full of healthy cattle, it may be their passion and strong dedication that has kept the farm from experiencing the same fate as so many other farms across both Missouri and the country.
According to a University of Missouri study, the number of cattle farms in Missouri has gone from 72,236 in 1997 to 43,543 by 2022.
And according to a 2025 U.S. Department of Agriculture study, the number of small family farms across the county has declined 8% since 2017.
Powell is able to keep his family farm running while having a full-time job in Columbia. He said the farm wouldn’t be able to fully support him and his family on its own.
However, that doesn’t take away from the pride he takes in the farm’s survival.
“We’ve withstood the test of time, as far as the glover family is concerned, and we don’t have any aspiration of going anywhere anytime soon,” Powell said.
The farm has been in the family for six generations. Powell and Glover’s desire to keep it there is paramount.
Glover’s great great grandfather was a slave, and after being enslaved, he became the original owner of the family farm back in 1866.
With this in mind, Glover is happy he can pass this farm down to his grandson.
“I’m glad to have him interested in it and to see him come down here to help me,” Glover said.
Even though Powell plans to one day have the farm to himself, he cherishes still being able to work alongside his grandfather.
“Being 84 years old still getting around and you know, doing this just for something to do, it warms my heart a little bit about it,” Powell said. “Just the fact that he’s done this all his life, and, you know, he still has the momentum and drive to continue it.”
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