Andrew and Clarissa Cauthorn farm near Mexico in Audrain County, Missouri’s first county to become #Agri-Ready Designated. This Missouri agriculture power couple live out a calling to build community and serve in a variety of leadership roles. They are excited to be raising crops and cattle on Andrew’s generational family farm. Andrew and Clarissa are newly appointed to the American Farm Bureau’s Young Farmer and Rancher Committee. The couple knows their committee experience will #POWERNewOpportunities for them and their farm.

#1 in Audrain County

Andrew and Clarissa recently took on more responsibilities for their family’s multi-generational farming operation. Andrew manages the farm’s row crops and partners with his dad on the cow/calf operation. Clarissa sells seed for Beck’s Hybrids and manages a team of seed dealers across mid-Missouri. Clarissa invests in the success of the people she meets through her job and builds long-term relationships as she shares her own agricultural experiences. In these ways, Andrew and Clarissa are both contributing to row crop production which is Audrain County’s #1 agriculture industry. Row crops grown in Audrain County are valued at $893 million and provide more than $150 million to household incomes annually.

Their Newest Opportunity

The Cauthorns began serving a two-year term on the American Farm Bureau Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee in March. Clarissa described the committee appointment as a “once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.” Andrew and Clarissa will learn about the diversity of American agriculture and develop life-long relationships with committee members from across the U.S. They look forward to learning from the people and the experience and are looking to be of service to their committee, Farm Bureau, the agriculture industry, and the farmers and ranchers who work within it.

Clarissa is known for coming up with big ideas, while Andrew excels at implementation. “Andrew and I believe that if you want to have a good community, you have to be that community,” said Clarissa.

Not Just Crops, But Cattle, Too

The couple is active in Audrain County Cattlemen’s group, an affiliate of the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association . Andrew leads the group as president; Clarissa serves as the treasurer. The group’s Scholarship Dinner & Auction funds thousands of dollars in scholarships to local youth annually.

“The Cattlemen’s Scholarship Banquet is my favorite event of the year because we make an impact on local kids not only in agriculture, but who want to become nurses, doctors, teachers, and more,” Clarissa said.

The Next Generation and Beyond

Andrew and Clarissa’s highest priority is raising their young sons, JR (4) and Emmett (2). They love their work, and their community, and are always looking ahead for new opportunities to serve and grow. Clarissa believes that if you are in the right place at the right time, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities may come to your back door.

Andrew has served on the Audrain County Soil and Water District Board. Clarissa is a member of the University of Missouri Alumni Association Board of Directors and serves on the Youth Leadership Committee for the Missouri Cattlemen’s Association. In addition, she is currently the president of the Audrain County Farm Bureau Board. The couple previously served on the Missouri Farm Bureau State Young Farmers and Ranchers Committee where Clarissa led as Chairperson in 2017. In 2021, Clarissa represented Missouri as the national Runner-Up in the American Farm Bureau Discussion Meet.

Missouri Cattlemen’s Association and Missouri Farm Bureau are partners of Missouri Farmers Care.