Mary Kraft is CFO for Kraft Family Dairies LLC, with 5500 milking Holstein dairy enterprises consisting of Badger Creek Farm and Quail Ridge Dairies at Fort Morgan Co. The two dairies employ 75 people, deliver 25-30 calves a day and market 5-7 semi's of milk daily. The operations directly farm 850 acres, and contract another 3500 acres for forage production to feed cows on the dairies.
She and her husband, Chris, designed and served as general contractor to build the 4300 cow Quail Ridge Dairy facility (the older facility, Badger Creek Farm, milks 1200 head). Mary developed the business, veterinary and cow management protocols for the dairies, as well as actively managing those processes and their finances. They continue to own and operate the dairy facilities.
She has written for the leading dairy magazines, been selected as the National Young Farmers Spokesperson for Agriculture, and named to the Colorado 4-H Hall of Fame for using her skills for Agricultural awareness and advocacy. She is President of the Colorado Livestock Assoc., which is the legislative and regulatory voice of animal production agriculture in Colorado, serves on the Western Dairy Association's milk promotions board.
She is a Fellow of the Colorado Agricultural Leadership Program. She has served on Morgan County's Economic Development Corporation Board, The Morgan County Hospital Foundation Board, the School for the Performing Arts Board and Adult Basic Literacy Education Board (ABLE).
She attended Colorado State University and earned a Bachelor's of Arts in Technical Journalism and Public Relations. She also completed a Masters of Business Administration (MBA) from New York Institute of Technology, while still managing the dairy operations.
Mary is an accomplished horsewoman, competing in regional Dressage horse shows with 2 warm blood horses. She also sculpts, paints and continues to write for magazines. Mary and Chris have 2 children- daughter, Jordan and son, Stratton.