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He doesn't administer any hormones to his livestock. Nor does he routinely use antibiotics. He feels that if sustainable farming practices are used, the need for antibiotic use is very limited. Because his animals are not confined, their immune systems are stronger and disease is less easily passed among the animals. On Terry's farm, antibiotics are only used to treat very sick animals. Terry does not place these animals in the market until a timely withdrawal period has passed. Terry uses other environmentally-friendly practices, including pasture rotation to aid in keeping the pastures healthy by ensuring foliage re-growth and limiting soil erosion. His livestock is limited from accessing water bodies and streams on the farm for lengthy periods of time to preserve stream integrity and to control stream bank and soil erosion. Terry is a member and president of Family Farms for the Future (FFFF), a local grassroots non-profit organization. FFFF is dedicated to the preservation of the sustainable family farm system of agriculture, preservation of our natural resources, and legislative involvement to guard against the influx of corporate concentration in their region. Terry is also involved in the Missouri Stream Team, monitoring water quality in the state. He is the co-founder and president of the Citizens' Legal Environmental Action Network (CLEAN) and serves as a consultant for GRACE Factory Farm Project. He also participates in several organizational working groups such as: the national and local Sierra Clubs, Clean Water Network & Feedlot Work Groups, Natural Resource Defense Council, WaterKeeper Alliance, Animal Welfare Institute, Farm Aid, and various other state and local organizations in Missouri, Iowa, Illinois, Oklahoma & Minnesota.
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Terry Spence owns and operates the farm on which he was born and raised. He has lived on this farm all but two of his 55 years. During his high school years, he participated in a Future Farmers of America (FFA) class in which he learned about raising sheep, dairy cows and beef cattle. After leaving high school and getting married, he worked off the farm for two years before returning in 1967. He feels that, "the love of farming and the raising of livestock is something that can't be erased from the heart, once you've participated in it."