Alota-Mouth Cattle Co

Welcome

Foster, RI-- When you arrive at the McCullough’s property, it appears to be more like a forest than a farm. It is cool and shady because of the many towering trees that offer some relief on this 90° day. As you drive up a bit further, there is a big red barn to the left, a replica of the original from 300 years ago, and large spanning pastures on both sides of the driveway. I know I am here to see Alota-Mouth Cattle Co. (AMCC) but the only four-legged animals I can see is a horse and an old German Shorthaired Pointer named Bucky. I am meeting with Ashley McCullough whose parents own the farm. I asked her where all of the cattle are. It turns out they are just casually grazing somewhere out of sight in the field; oh, I think I’m going to like this place.

The McCullough's have been breeding and raising show quality animals for over 40 years. Ashley's father Ron McCullough was involved with 4-H and FFA as a young adult. After a few years off from raising cattle the McCullough's decided it was time to get back in the game when Brent McCullough thought it would be fun to raise a steer. After this experience the family began raising animals again. While Brent is no longer involved, Ron, Helena, Ashley, and Julie McCullough keep the farm going.

The McCullough’s currently raise 12 cows. The cattle have huge pastures to graze on freely that are lined by a historic 17^th century stonewall. When Ashley and I found the herd, they were all sitting under the trees keeping cool. They have plenty of room to roam around. In the summer, they spend all of their time outside eating grass and hay. In the winter months, the cattle are kept in paddocks with an unlimited supply of haylage and dry hay. The steers are kept year round in paddocks around the barn and are feed a grain and hay diet. Tending to the cattle is very low maintenance and the cows have always lived in good-health so they never need antibiotics. Ashley explains that as long as they have food and water, they are virtually effortless to take care of.

The McCullough’s cows are more like pets than livestock. Since all of their cows were born and raised on the farm, and shown by Ashley throughout New England, they are very comfortable around people. Some of them even let me pet them! When Ashley walks up to one, they share more of a dog-human relationship than a cattle-human relationship. Each cow has a name and is addressed by it. The cows are treated with respect, not just as a means to a product.

Ashley’s main role at AMCC is the breeding program. When picking sires for the following years calves there are many different traits that she looks for. Some of those traits are, muscling, conformation, style, and calving ease. Once those sires are picked, she matches them with the appropriate cow. All of the breeding done at AMCC is Artificial Insemination (AI). When Ashley first got involved with showing cattle she knew that she wanted her career to be in agriculture. After attending two universities and receiving her Bachelors in Agri-Business Management and Rural Development from West Virginia University she now works at the Connecticut Farm Bureau Association. She is also involved in other Ag organizations such as a variety of breed organizations,  working with 4-H students, judging throughout CT, and selling beef at local farmers markets.

It is only within the past two years that AMCC has started selling their beef locally at farmers markets throughout the state. With the help of her cousin Julie McCullough, AMCC is licensed to sell at markets as well as on the farm. Both Julie and Ashley sell beef every Saturday at the Burriville Farmers Market, and the Scituate Farmers Market. They both enjoy chatting with customers and educating consumers about where their food comes from. Both often invite costumers to come visit the farm to learn about the beef business.

Life is so good here that there are even cattle imposters

The McCullough's firmly believe in supporting local farms, especially in Rhode Island where agriculture is a dying practice. Ashley and Julie hope that AMCC will be able to expand so that they can continue to sell their products at farmers markets, and eventually begin marketing to local restaurants. There is a notably relaxed environment at AMCC Cattle Co. I think that their caring-oriented approach allows for the McCullough’s to raise their livestock in a natural, healthy environment that marches to the beat of nature and not production. As a result, Alota- Mouth Cattle Co is producing beef products that are delicious and “A Head and Rump Above the Rest!”

Good Eggs Launched!

Hi Friends!

After many hours and never-ending smiles, Good Eggs has launched!!!

Check out www.goodeggs.com and see what the team's been up to!

I am so proud to be part of this incredible team! I encourage you to shop around, send me your feedback, and enjoy the locavore land of plenty!

Love,

Angelica

ps: y'all like Wheat and Tomato?

Went West

Hello!

It's been awhile, and I sincerely apologize for my absence. However, unlike other times where I slack on posting and attribute it to "too much school work", this time it is very legitimate-at least I think so. I moved back to San Francisco....

BECAUSE I GOT A JOB!

I'm not really sure how I pulled this off, but I approached a tech start up called Good Eggs, and asked if I could work/intern for them. To my surprise, they responded. It went a little something like this:

Me in March: Good Eggs! I really like what you're doing can I work for you?

Me in late June: Good Eggs! I'm obsessed with you! Can I come hang out, please please please please?

GE on a Friday: Sure we'll interview you. [interview takes place here] Can you start work on Monday?

Me: No?

Me on the following Thursday: Ok I'll be there Wednesday! I'm on my way!

Obviously that's the over simplified version, but you get the gist. You can call me if you need the details. I had to leave my delightful internship with Red Tomato in pursuit of unprecedented opportunities. I packed my things and booked a one way ticket to San Francisco! I arrived at midnight the day I started work. Ever since it's been non-stop work, jam packed with fun and new learning experiences. I'm particularly psyched to be working for Good Eggs because they are working to cultivate local food systems in a sustainable manner, worldwide. One of their primary focuses is accessibility in all senses of the word. They make accessing local food super convenient. Through Good Eggs, you can have local food delivered to your house or you can pick up local food from several different vendors in one location in your neighborhood.

Here's some other ridiculously awesome things about GE:
I'm learning new skills and facts left and right.
They trust that I had a good brain and give me actual responsibilities and not just "can you make coffee?" (Of note, I've never worked that kind of job).
They personally interact with all of the food producers.
They work in the best interest of small food producers' and local farmers.
They also work in the best interest of the customers (i.e. so far Bay Area folk) and take all of their feedback into consideration.
We have lunch together, family style, every day.
The office consists only of ridiculously brilliant, kind, warm, and funny people.
We have pie every Friday.
We have a napping loft.
Everyone works hard.
I really believe in the company's mission statement, and it feels like an honor to be able to work for such a cool start up.
Almost everyone bikes to work-- I would if I had more confidence in my coordination.


If you want to learn more about where I am devoting all of my time and energy to, check out our website when in launches on July 26th, 2012 and come to our Pig Roast Launch Party on July 26th from 6pm-9pm at the Mission Street Market on Bartlett at 22nd Street.

Cheers!

Simmons Organic Farm

If I own a farm someday, I would want it to be like this...

Note the ocean in the background

Squatters

Middletown, RI- There are few farms as transparent as Simmons Organic Farm. When I arrived, there had been a miscommunication and they were not expecting me, but Karla was still happy to talk with me while she packaged a new type of crumbly goat cheese she had just made. When we finished chatting, Karla let me walk around the 120-acre farm unaccompanied to take pictures. First I shot some photos of the dairy and fainting goats in the petting zoo by the parking lot. Then I made my way up the hill; my mental map looked a bit like this: Belted Galloway cows to the left, sheep at the crest of the hill, vegetables to the left just before the sheep, pigs a bit further down the hill after it crests, and chickens up the hill and to the right of the pigs. While marching up the hill, I see a mother duck and her three babies; they are not official members of the farm, but given the landscape, it is understandable why they would want to live here. The farm looks like a nature walk. On either side of the path are thick grasses and plants. There is a notable amount of butterflies fluttering around the farm, and there is a soothing chirping sound coming from the tall grasses. Once I surmounted the hill, my jaw-dropped because there was a stunning ocean view; Simmons Organic Farm is quite the spectacle. 

The history of the farm is equally as interesting as the landscape. In 1632, John Coggeshall of Essex, England arrived in Boston and shortly moved south to settle on Aquidneck Island, RI. He was allotted 400 acres and today Simmons Organic Farm is comprised of 120 of these acres. By the mid 1800s, David Coggeshall owned majority of this land and started one of the largest dairy farms in Rhode Island. His daughter Elizabeth married John L. Simmons. Their children and grandchildren maintained the farm through the early and mid twentieth century. In 1988, the grown up grandchildren Alexander Sr. and James decided to sell the farm’s development rights in order to preserve the farm for future generations. Brian and Karla, who currently run the farm, took over in 2000. They grew up together as high school sweet hearts and moved back onto the family farm while Brian’s grandparents were still working there. Over a three-year span Brian and Karla became more and more involved on the farm. One day, Brian’s grandparents gave Brian and Karla ownership of the farm, and they have been running it together ever since. 

Will faint for food

From the time that they started working on the farm, Brian and Karla knew that they wanted to make the farm certified organic. After three transition years, they became organic certified in 2004. They are very happy with this decision. Karla is aware of the growing consumer preference for local and organic produce and meat. She is glad that her farm is able to offer both of these things. Simmons Organic Farm continues to grow in success. This year they have over 300 members in their CSA; they usually have 40. Brian and Karla have also seen a recent increase in the number of visitors to their petting zoo.

There are many different operations occurring on the farm. Simmons Organic Farm raises Belted Galloway beef cows. They chose this heritage breed because the cows have a thicker mane, which allows them to stay outside year round, with the exception of blizzards. They are 100% grass fed and spend all of their time in spacious pastures. They also raise red Tamworth pigs, which are a heritage breed of pigs known for their hardiness. The pigs were in a large pen that had many trees and shady spots inside of it. The hogs and piglets were happily running around and rolling in the dirt when I saw them. Simmons Organic Farm also has pastured raised poultry and eggs. They also have a mobile poultry house. When I visited, one chicken had bravely escaped then pen, although she was hesitant to stray far from the others. For a brief minute I thought the Simmons had a small poultry flock, and then I realized that this was an optical illusion and that the chickens just had a ton of space. They also have 50 dairy goats and about 20 sheep. They donate the wool to the Rhody Warm Project and sell the meat.

This is also a biodynamic farm. The animals are used to reduce pests on the farm. Since pesticides cannot be used on organic farms, the Simmons get creative with how to keep unwanted visitors off of their plants. In the fall and early winter, the cows are moved to the vegetable plots to eat the extra produce. Chickens follow after the cows and eat the stems, stalks, and insect larvae left by the cows. This method reduces the amount of returning insects for the next year. Karla notes that they have not had many problems with pests as a result of this practice.

A new exciting product Simmons Organic Farm now offers is goat cheese! Karla has been experimenting with making goat cheese for several years. Only in 2011 did she begin selling it at markets and distributing it in the CSA. Once they determined that the goat cheese production was a feasible plan, they received a grant from the USDA Farm Service Agency to build their cheese operation. They built the structure on the farm near the famous petting zoo. They now have a large cheese making and processing vessel that enables her to make 600 containers of cheese per week. Karla has been experimenting with different types of goat cheese. Currently offered at farmers’ markets is a delicious chevre, which comes in many different flavors ranging from herbs de Provence to Chipotle. When I visited, Karla was packaging a new type cheese, a goat cheese crumble, flavored with herbs de Provence or garlic.  She also hopes to start making feta soon.  The goat cheese project has been very successful and I highly recommend buying some for yourself at the farmers’ market.

Speaking with Karla and Brian was an absolute pleasure. They seem in touch with the current markets and aware of how unique and progressive their farm is. Karla loves working here because it always feels like she is doing something new and different on the farm. She also likes the idea of providing food for her family as well as 300 other families in the area. Karla explains that at Simmons Organic Farm, they “try to do things the right way. We try to be good stewards to our land and to our animals because they provide us lots.” Brian appreciates the farm just as much. When I met him on the hilltop, he told me about how sometimes he forgets about how lucky he is to own such a wonderful farm. But then he’ll be working, look up and see the sunset over the pastures looking onto the ocean and feel like the luckiest guy in the world. All are welcome to visit Simmons Organic Farm and petting zoo, and if you cannot make the trip down, they sell at several farmers markets and to Market Mobile so that anyone can have the joy of eating the food they produce.

This I Believe Essay

In my class Leadership Theory and Practice, one of our final assignments was to write and submit an essay to "This I Believe". I never heard back, but isn't that one of the reasons why I have a blog? To share my writing and thoughts?

I couldn't think of an appetizing compost picture,
 so here's a hen at Simmon's Organic Farm.

The Benefits of National Composting

Growing up in San Francisco, California, composting was always the norm. Just like all San Franciscans, my family put our green bins out on the curb for pick-up along side our blue and black bins. When I started college four years ago in Massachusetts, it was an adjustment to suddenly throw away food waste and paper towels that at home were composted by the city. When potentially compostable items are thrown out, they still decompose, but the nutrients from the waste are inaccessible if they are in a landfill.  It felt profligate to dispose of items that could have been composted and eventually used on farms as a natural fertilizer. It felt like an interruption to a self- sustaining cycle of growth, nourishment, and decay.

I decided to start my own compost program, modeled after San Francisco’s, which emphasizes ease for participants. Every Friday, I drive around campus and collect seventy- five individuals’ compostable items and empty the five-gallon trash bags into thirteen cubic feet composters. The paper towels and paper plates mixed with the food scraps create a balanced recipe for the compost. All of the unused nutrients left in the peels of oranges, the shells of eggs, and the weeds pulled from the garden break down into nutrient-rich soil. I stir the compost as if it was a slow cooked stew, but in this case I have to wait sixty days to enjoy the finished product instead of six hours.  At the end, there are several pounds of nutrient-rich compost that I can use to grow food or sell for a profit. The most astounding part of my job is that the entire collecting and stirring process takes one hour of my time a week.

I believe in composting on a national level. Farmers and farmland would benefit because they would have a natural source of topsoil. Our current farming practices deplete topsoil faster than it regenerates. If the United States composted on a national scale, we could possibly generate enough compost to replenish the necessary nutrient levels in the soil, avoid oligotrophic soil conditions, and the use of synthetic fertilizers. In addition, nation-wide composting would decrease our countries’ contributions to landfills and greenhouse gas emissions while creating more jobs. We have the resources and tools to compost on a national scale while increasing our nation’s food security, keeping food prices down, and decreasing our contribution to landfills and to climate change if we do so.

Field of Bacon

I made a Twitter
Follow me @fieldofbacon
I’ll post recipes, pics, books, funny retweets
If you bakin', they will come

Dzen Farms Strawberry Rhubarb Pie

Photos by Benner Boswell

It is a strange day when you find yourself with too many strawberries. I don't mean a two-pint massive container from Costco. I don't mean when you buy bland California strawberries that don't taste good enough to eat, so you have too many and too many that are going bad.

I mean 8 quarts of freshly picked strawberries from Dzen Farm in South Windsor, CT. We are talking EIGHT QUARTS of unbelievably sweet and juicy strawberries. These are the best strawberries I have ever had. It's not just my bias towards local farms either. I took a quart to my best friend's graduation party and several of her relatives agreed that they were the best strawberries ever.

Back to the point: What do you do with that many strawberries?
Answer: Make Strawberry Rhubarb Pie!


Recipe to come but here are a few starting tips:

1) Julia Child's Paté Brisée dough recipe + 2 tablespoons of sugar (in the dough) (Flour, vegetable shortening, butter, sugar, salt, ice water)
2) One quart of native strawberries (Dzen Farms)
3) 3 pieces of rhubarb, chopped
4)White Sugar
5) Brown Sugar
6) Corn Starch
7) Salt
8) 1 egg white wash (on the crust)

Photo by Benner Boswell

Native Strawberry Picking (at Work)

Photo by Eric Ballhaussen on 6/4/12

Dzen Farm Strawberry Picking

I have an internship with Red Tomato this summer. Their mission is to get local farms' produce into grocery stores. They strive to find a balance between competitive prices in grocery stores against larger farms and a a fair price for farmers. I find the organization to be really interesting because they are working in food systems and the local food movement on a regional scale. For example, right now is strawberry season. I take all of the orders from Whole Food Market in MA, RI, and CT for strawberries from Dzen Farm in South Windsor CT. This contrasts to other local food organizations I've worked for who only worked at a state level, for example, farmers markets in RI featuring growers in RI.

My bosses at Red Tomato thought Eric, the other intern, and I should visit Dzen Farm so we could see the product we were selling. So on Monday, we got to spend the whole work day on a strawberry farm. It's pretty far away so between the transportation, the tour, the strawberry picking, and the diner stop, it really did take up a whole day. I thought you all may enjoy these photos that Eric took.

Oh! And most importantly, if you are in the RI, MA, CT area, stop by any Whole Foods Market and pick up your quart of delicious, native strawberries from Dzen Farm under the Red Tomato (Plainville, MA) signs.

25 acres of strawberries... miam! (Photo by Eric Ballhaussen on 6/4/12)

Just in case you wanted proof that they are edible (Photo by Eric Ballhaussen on 6/4/12)

Jewel strawberries. An up close shot of what Eric and I ate (Photo by Eric Ballhaussen on 6/4/12)

Meatball Recipe

As some of you may know, I lived in the ECCO house, environmentally conscious and community oriented house, for my last two years of college. In the spring semester of 2012, Alex and Teddy decided to try out the Paleo diet. The boys bought a huge freezer. It was so huge that you could probably fit two humans in it! Then they bought 1/4 of a cow from Wheel-View Farm to eat for the semester. Since they were unable to finish the cow between the two of them, and Benner and I were the only two staying in the area for the summer, they gave us the rest of the beef.  WOHOO! Well, my new mission is to slowly work through this beef, mostly ground beef mind you, by the end of the summer. I've already cheated by giving some of it to other friends and co-workers, but yeah, it's still a ton of beef.

For this meatball recipe, you can really use any type of ground meat you want. When I'm home, I usually go through my parents freezer and take all the weird quantities of frozen meat (one pork chop here, a ground beef package there, etc), grind it up, and use that. This summer, we're have 100% beef meatballs because, well that's the meat we have!

These meatballs can be sauteed or baked: see directions below.





Ingredients:

2 pounds of ground beef (Wheel-View Farm)
3/4 wine (red or white, again use what you have open)
1/2 cup Pecorino Romano cheese, grated
2 slices of thick, stale bread, ground up in a food processor
1/2 cup parsley, washed and chopped in a food processor (Dzen Farm)
3 large garlic cloves, chopped in a food processor
1 egg yolk (Casey Farm)
1/4 non fat milk (Organic Valley)
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:

1) PREHEAT OVEN TO 380F.

2) Pour the wine over the beef and mix together. Let sit for 10 minutes.

3) In a separate bowl, mix together pecorino, bread, parsley, and garlic. This mixture should create two cups.

4) Add the cheese, bread, and herb mix to the beef. Add in the egg yolk, milk, a dash of salt and pepper to taste. Mix as little as possible. Stop mixing the second everything looks evenly dispersed.

5) TO BAKE: Grease a baking pan or cookie sheet with olive oil. Begin making small meatballs, about 1 inch in diameter. Place the meatballs on the baking sheet so that none of the meatballs are touching. Cook for 15 minutes. Cut one open to make sure it's not pink inside. If it's not pink, then it's done. When finished place them on a paper bag or paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

6) TO COOK WITH OIL: Heat 1 inch of cooking oil (light olive oil or vegetable oil) in a sautée pan. Put your hand over the pan (don't touch it, duh); if you can feel the heat, add the meatballs to the pan so that they are not touching. Cook for five minutes. Turn over each meatball so that it cooks evenly through. Cook for another three minutes. Cut one open and make sure there is no pink on the inside. When finished place them on a paper bag or paper towel to absorb the excess oil.

7) Serve with pasta and your favorite tomato sauce recipe. I'll upload my mom's one day.

Advice on sautéing vs. baking: When I first started making meatballs, I always cooked them in oil. I thought it would give the exterior a better looking texture. However, sautéing meatballs takes a long time because you usually have to do them in batches. If you are impatient like me, you can also make the mistake of trying to turn them over before they're ready, and then they can fall apart, which is a mess. They also are much oily-er, which you'll see on the paper bag.

This time I baked them and, honestly, they had the same flavor as when I sautéed them. Baking them also kept their structure in tact more. The meatballs were definitely less oily. While they didn't have as nice of "perfectly browned exterior", by the time they were covered in sauce, I did not notice the difference. It was also nice to walk away from them and get the pasta cooking/ do some dishes instead of constantly tending to the meatballs in the oil.

Winner: Bake

Italian Meatballs

Recipe Coming Soon!

Homemade meatballs using local meat from Wine Country and herbs!

Good luck on finals friends!

 I will post the recipe soon but if you can't wait check out Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food to see the recipe that inspired these!

Composting at Wheaton College

About the Program:

 In the Spring of 2011, Wheaton College started a small pilot- composting program for the on-campus student and faculty houses. Each house is given a food scraps container, biodegradable bags, and a lid. The households put the filled bags outside to be picked up weekly, just like a trash pick-up system. Students collect these bags and bring them to larger composting systems on campus. The waste is disposed of in the composting bins. The brand of our compost containers is the " New Age Composter". Wheaton College obtained these composters through a subsidized composting program sponsored by the Town of Norton's Board of Health. The soil will be used in the student -operated greenhouses; it will also be available for free for houses that participate in the program. Extra soil may be purchased at the college's farmer's market to fundraise for other sustainable activities on campus.

Want to Compost on Campus? Any person or household is welcome to join the composting program. All materials can be supplied gratis. It is also possible to deposit your own compost collection in the communal bins behind the Observatory and baseball field; however, please abide by the compost rules and do not dispose of any breads, cakes, meats, or dairy products here.

Below are downloadable and printable materials that provide more information about Wheaton's Composting Program and information about how to start your own backyard compost!

General Composting Brochure

Acceptable and Unacceptable Items for the Compost, illustrations by Rosemary Liss

Compost Recipe Flyer

Information on Massachusetts Subsidized Compost Container Program

Troubleshooting Composting Bin


To Access these files in a more pristine form, i.e. downloadable PDF instead of GoogleDocs, CLICK HERE

Schartner Farms

Asparagus Plant at Schartner Farms

EXETER, RI - Schartner Farms seems to be everywhere. At Farm Fresh’s Market Mobile warehouse, there are boxes upon boxes of produce from the farm going to dozens of local restaurants every week. It is also likely that you’ll see them at one of the 13 farmers’ market at which they sell. If  you drive up Route 2 in Exeter, the vast farmland will inevitably catch your eye and beckon for you to pull over and shop at the farm stand, which is always overflowing with a colorful bounty of produce, jams, and baked goods. 


Schartner Farms started in 1902. The first generation of Schartner’s came to the United States and began growing crops on two separate farms. The second generation moved to the farm’s current location of 150 acres and started a dairy farm. This generation also started an amusement park called “Schartner’s Kiddyland” but, in the long run, it was not as successful as the farm. Schartner Farms then began growing a ton of potatoes, which they sold to Lays® for potato chips. In 1972, Schartner Farms opened a small farm stand on location. Today, if you look closely, you can still see the perimeter of this foundation within their current, larger farm stand.


The farm is now run by third Schartner generation, Rich. He grew up on the farm with his two brothers and four other male cousins. The seven boys worked on the farm, and after college, Rich bought the farm from his father. The farm is busier than ever! There are nine full time employees and up to 100 seasonal employees. The farm has also expanded to include a plant nursery, bakery and gift shop. When I visited, the farm stand was bustling with customers and in back, everyone was working together, laughing and chatting.


You really get the sense that this is a family run farm. In the course of twenty minutes, I was meeting aunts, uncles, grandparents and children. Everyone was helping out and keeping an eye out for each other. It seems that people genuinely enjoy working here and want to be here. Everyone is also very gracious and interested in the work. When someone finished fixing a refrigerator, Rich was so pleased that he immediately put together a veggie box for them. When I asked Rich about any new upcoming projects, he immediately pulled out his cell phone to show me pictures of flourishing crops, new logo ideas, and other enticing photos. As we spoke, tons of food kept being passed around and offered to me. Even though I had just met the Schartner Farms’ crew, I felt completely welcomed by the entire group and they treated me as if I was an old friend passing through.



After learning about their new Belgium endive production, Grandpa’s pickles and Grammy’s jam, Lindsay took me out to see the actual farm. Lindsay is not a Schartner, but she has been watching Rich’s kids for years, works on the farm, and at many markets. It was 103° with a scalding sun and a weak, intermittent breeze to pick vegetables. Lindsay and I walked between the rows of healthy vegetables. We peered under leaves with curiosity and when something could be picked, we took turns cutting the vegetables away from the plant, got back in the truck and continued on down the road surrounded by rows and rows of food. We walked through the rows of various peppers, both spicy and sweet, tomatoes, eggplants, and then found our way to the pond. 






The pond is the farms’ reservoir for watering all of the crops. But, it’s more special than that. Lindsay says that they also have big parties out there with a speaker system, strings of lights, and a huge indoor/outdoor kitchen that any cook would have died to cook in. 


When we got back near the farm stand, we took a detour into the greenhouse, just about 120°+ in there, and I stood in awe at the rows hanging tomato plants and hundreds of seed trays. In the greenhouse, they grow a lot of seedlings and plants for the nursery.

Massive Greenhouses that reach back further than you'd think

Hanging Tomatoes

There is a lot of food on this farm. Rich thinks they sell about 200 bags of carrots at the Hope Street Winter Market per day. They produce 140,000 pounds of potatoes, 16,000 pounds of greenhouse tomatoes, 10 acres of field tomatoes, 60,000 pounds of carrots, and 435,000 pounds of corn annually. Between the farm stand, Market Mobile, and the farmers markets, they certainly have a lot of people to feed. Any extra food goes to food pantries or is processed in preserves or frozen.



A new project they have been working on is growing wheat and rye, a rare crop in these parts. They began growing wheat two years ago. Kenyon’s Grist Mill, down the road, grinds the grains for them, and Seven Stars Bakery bought a year’s worth of rye supply for their famous Rhode Island Rye bread. In 2011, they used their Winter White Wheat to make chocolate chip cookies for the Local Food Fest. 


When talking with Rich and Lindsay, both of them seemed so genuinely happy to be working on the farm. Rich’s favorite part is planting seeds between February and April and seeing them turn into plants and start producing food. He loves the idea of growing an everyday necessity out of nothing. Lindsay also loves working on the farm, but her favorite part is working at the markets, building relationships with customers and talking with them about where their food comes from. Now that I’ve told you all about this magical farm, you will start to notice them everywhere: on every menu and at every farmers’ market. Strike up a conversation with Lindsay at the market or take the twenty minute drive down from Providence to the farm stand. A visit to the farmstand is certainly necessary— or how else will you get your hands on Grammy’s Jam, mouth watering homemade pies and yummy cookies?