Virginia Beef Corporation was founded in 1965 by William R. Brockett.
Virginia Beef Corporation started as a feedlot operation in 1965 located on Centreville Road between Herndon and Chantilly. We had a feedlot setup to house 5-6,000 head of beef cattle per year, grew our own corn to fill pits that stored 12,000 tons worth of silage, and just enough equipment to get the job done. Hours were long and the work was hard.
A couple years down the road we leased more land to expand outside of Fairfax County and began to grow in Loudoun County, Prince William County, and Fauquier County. We expanded our cattle operation with breeding stock, harvested our own hay, and added soybeans and wheat to our list of grains. By the early 70's sod was added to our crop list. In 1978 we left Herndon and moved our headquarters to Ashburn. Larger grain facility, shop, machine shed, fertilizer storage, and warehouse all built to accommodate our growth. Our sod division was flourishing with all the new development in Fairfax and Loudoun counties. We hired seasonal help from Ohio for spring crop planting and fall harvest as our grain division was also flourishing. Grain being hauled to ports in Baltimore, Richmond, and Norfolk. The ranch division was also expanding with our breeding program using primarily Angus and Simmental cattle. Back in those days horses were used for moving and gathering cattle, today it's all done with four wheelers. In 1988 development caught up with us again so we packed up and moved to Haymarket. We downsized overall as we had less land, but thanks to technology we also had the ability to produce higher yield grains on less land. We continued to be one of the largest sod producers on the East Coast, making sod maintenance and production a high priority. And our cattle division expanded to out West for a bit.
A couple years down the road we leased more land to expand outside of Fairfax County and began to grow in Loudoun County, Prince William County, and Fauquier County. We expanded our cattle operation with breeding stock, harvested our own hay, and added soybeans and wheat to our list of grains. By the early 70's sod was added to our crop list. In 1978 we left Herndon and moved our headquarters to Ashburn. Larger grain facility, shop, machine shed, fertilizer storage, and warehouse all built to accommodate our growth. Our sod division was flourishing with all the new development in Fairfax and Loudoun counties. We hired seasonal help from Ohio for spring crop planting and fall harvest as our grain division was also flourishing. Grain being hauled to ports in Baltimore, Richmond, and Norfolk. The ranch division was also expanding with our breeding program using primarily Angus and Simmental cattle. Back in those days horses were used for moving and gathering cattle, today it's all done with four wheelers. In 1988 development caught up with us again so we packed up and moved to Haymarket. We downsized overall as we had less land, but thanks to technology we also had the ability to produce higher yield grains on less land. We continued to be one of the largest sod producers on the East Coast, making sod maintenance and production a high priority. And our cattle division expanded to out West for a bit.
Today we continue to farm in Loudoun County and Prince William County, but most of our land is located in Fauquier County. We rotate crops and take soil samples annually, so we know what to feed the soil for each crop. We work hard to maintain each farm by bush hogging pastures and field edges, cleaning up fallen trees, fixing pasture fences, maintaining driveways, and keeping gates/ cables up at all entrances. Equipment repair is done as needed as is maintenance.
Farming takes a lot of work in the field, in the shop, and in the office. Regardless of the season, the weather or how we feel on a particular day the job needs to be done by a certain date to be a success. The daily to-do list on the farm is never ending and keeps us going in our less busy season and rainy days. Having the right team on the farm makes all the difference. Virginia Beef Corporation wouldn't be the success it is if it weren't for ourexcellent team!