The Drost family is dedicated to supporting each other while caring for land and community
If there are three words that would best sum up Drost Family Farm, it would be care, family and community.
Jackson and Amanda Drost farm near Oskaloosa, Iowa, with their two sons – Richard, 11, and Andy, 6.
The farm itself is a testament to diversification. The Drosts raise corn, soybeans, alfalfa, small grains, hay, oats and pasture. They also manage a cow-calf operation and do custom work. Diversification requires additional thought, effort and risk, and the Drosts are committed for the long haul.
“If we take care of these farms like we take care of each other, they will take care of us,” Jackson says.
Care
The Drosts flew on their first cover crop in 2010 and have since expanded to covering all their fields annually. While using primarily rye and oats, they have begun adding other species like turnips and camelina to further diversify.
Jackson and Amanda also employ many sustainable practices, including using over 100 sediment basins, terraces, buffer strips, grassed waterways, a saturated buffer and land they’ve enrolled in the federal Conservation Reserve Program. “Conservation was taught to us from the generation before, and conservation has also become a major focus for us,” Jackson says.
The Drost family’s commitment to stewardship and innovation has also earned recognition beyond their farm. In 2023, Jackson received Peoples Company’s inaugural “Farmer of the Year” award, which recognizes land stewardship, conservation and responsible land management. For the Drosts, the award embodies many of the same principles that guide their operation each day: improving soil health, embracing conservation practices and making decisions with future generations in mind.
That focus became even more important when the family expanded their operation in Mahaska County in 2019. Additional acres brought new opportunities but also reinforced the family’s belief that good land management requires a long-term outlook.
Family
Family farming has been a tenet of the Drosts for generations. Jackson developed his passion for farming young – “I’d say I started farming the day I was born,” he says – and he’s passed that passion on to his sons.
In 2020, the oldest son, Richard, planted his first crop of popcorn after Jackson showed him how he grew it as a kid. “That first year, he hand-picked every ear himself and spent the winter after school shelling popcorn with Grandpa in the shop,” Jackson says.
Richard wanted to grow more and try selling the kernels, at which point his younger brother Andy got involved. Andy helps with the sales and promotion side, making short videos for social media and even giving a small talk to his class at school.
“Richard’s grown more each year. In 2024, he planted four times what he did the year before,” Jackson says. “He keeps track of expenses, pays his cousins and neighbors to help pick and covers his own costs – except for the land.” In January, Richard and Andy, with help from their parents, presented about Drost Brothers Popcorn at PFI’s 2026 Annual Conference, to highly positive reviews.
For her part, Amanda grew up on a small, fourth-generation dairy farm in northeast Iowa and understands the challenges and opportunities that come with agriculture. Both Jackson and Amanda work off-farm, Jackson for a lighting company and Amanda in marketing for a local hospital. Between on-farm work, off-farm jobs and two busy school-age boys – and their popcorn business – the Drosts find themselves pulled in many directions.
At the end of the day, they understand the stakes and take ample time to support each other. Jackson and Amanda feel the popcorn business is helping Richard and Andy learn valuable lessons about business, marketing, the cyclical nature of farming and community engagement. Those lessons, they say, will carry forward regardless of whether the boys choose to keep their business going.
Community
The entire Drost family is also involved in their local community, through PFI and otherwise. They partner with Iowa Learning Farms to implement sustainable farming practices and share their experience, and they are actively involved in the Iowa Soybean Association. Amanda is also involved with Mahaska-Marion Women, Land & Legacy, a U.S. Department of Agriculture education and outreach program.
Richard and Andy are also getting involved. In 2024, the boys began selling Drost Brothers Popcorn products at local youth sporting events, including Little League games they were playing in. The next year, they expanded and started offering sampler boxes at local retail and grocery stores. That money stays in the community, helping the Drosts succeed and aid others.
The Drosts don’t farm because it’s easy. They farm because they care – about the land, the vocation and their children’s future. They take pride in what they produce, and how they produce it. “In small towns, people support each other, and we want our boys to grow up seeing the importance of giving back and staying involved,” Amanda says.
In late 2025, Jackson and Amanda became lifetime members of PFI. Their rationale for doing so embodies their values.
“We choose to support PFI through a lifetime membership because sustainability, soil health and being good stewards of the land does not stop from year to year,” Jackson says. “Continuing support for PFI and the programs they do to support conservation in farming is ongoing and we are honored to join them in the valuable work they do.”
