Hear from Lou Lamoreux: Livestock Farmer and Former IL Corn Board Director

On this episode of IL Corn TV, host Shane Gray sits down with Lou Lamoreux, a farmer from Lanark, Illinois, whose resume includes stints as a schoolteacher, 2024 Master Farmer honoree, and leadership roles across the pork industry, Farm Bureau, and IL Corn.

Lou's farm dates back to 1867, and today he farms with his brother, and their two sons. The operation consists of corn, beans, wheat, hay and pasture alongside a herd of roughly 250 cows and 2,200 fed cattle a year. Lou talks about the shift from dairy and hogs to today's diversified operation, and the pride of watching his own grandsons show early interest in the farm's future.

Much of the conversation centers on the beef side of the business: how genetics have reshaped cattle breeding over the decades (from big, tall cows to more compact, muscled ones favored by today's buyers), rising input and freight costs on feeder cattle, and the investments (like a monoslope cattle building and rubber-matted floors) that go into animal comfort. Lou pushes back on the "factory farming" narrative, arguing that comfort and care are central to good production, whatever the species.

Looking ahead, Lou identifies labor as the industry's biggest looming challenge, noting that even farm kids today often haven't grown up around livestock. He also reflects on his time with the IL Corn Marketing Board, touching on how checkoff dollars support everything from ethanol and sustainable aviation fuel to emerging maritime fuel research and new corn-derived products.