BLOG | Farmivore 1

Hey everyone! hope you all had a wonderful thanksgiving, and have stayed warm and safe the last week or so of lake effect snow! I know it's been awhile since my last showcase post but had a hard time with weather and holidays to get out to some farms and get things on a roll! I appreciate everyone's patience and hope you have been enjoying these posts and have made time to check out the last farm I wrote about Rise N Swine!

Thorpe's Organic Family Farm is another one of my favorite local farms in the community and probably my favorite place to get organic, pesticide free produce! When you first pull into the parking lot you are greeted with a giant Thorpe's sign, the farm store, and a produce stand as well (Usually only operated when the weather permits). Immediately you are welcomed with an authentic farm feeling that welcomes you with open arms. As you enter the farm store you are embraced with warmth and if you're anything like me your eyes immediately fixate on the baked goods on the counter. This paired with the smell of coffee and the wooden floors give a very homey mood and create a comfortable environment.

While I don't eat a ton of vegetables in my diet I always find an incredible selection of seasonal fruit at their farm store! As far as what's in season you will find a great deal of squash products on their shelves currently as well as low spray (low in pesticide) apples!

Life Hack: If you are finding it hard to get pesticide free produce you can soak your fruits and veggies in water and baking soda for 15min and this will remove 90% or more of the pesticides on the skin of the fruit. Unfortunately what has been absorbed by the fruit is a lost cause but you can reduce the amount of chemicals nonetheless. As for ratio it is 1tbs of baking soda per liter of water!

Along with the squash and apples you will also find veggies such as beets, kale, and root veg in their fresh food cooler just outside the store as well as bags of potatoes when you first walk in!

They also have some coolers with some fantastic cheese products made with raw cheese that I highly recommend, the parmesan reggiano and the gouda are my personal favorites. In the same cooler you will also find cartons of eggs, low vat dairy products, and even some other treats.

Around the store you will also find various grain products including oats, pasta, dark chocolate raisins, plant based gum, seasonings, dog treats, soaps, candles, raw honey, organic maple syrup, and even some plastic free cleaning products that I highly recommend! I personally use the wooden dish brushes with agave root brushes!

All in all, Thorpe's carries a wide variety of produce, meat, dairy, and household items that can be very essential for high quality healthy lifestyle and I recommend that anyone that is interested in getting away from mass produced, highly processed foods and products to check them out and see what they have to offer! They are definitely on my list of farms that I visit regularly for products and I always look forward to seeing what they have in stock!

Part of my journey in choosing to drop chain grocery stores and exclusively support farms is realizing I cannot get all my products and one and I cannot simply pick one to only support, but to support all the farms in my community and urge everyone to do the same. Sure I have to make a couple trips to different farms for different things but I feel much better at the end of the day because of it. Support local farms, drop processed foods, and give your mind, body, and soul what it craves.

Thanks again to everyone who continues to read the Farmivore Blog and feel free to comment on the articles any questions, concerns, or if you have a favorite farm store you want me to check out please feel free to drop a link!

For my first Farm Showcase I wanted to write about my top favorite farm (so far) that I do all of my grocery shopping at as far as meat products. Rise 'N' Swine by far has the biggest selection of grass-fed beef products as well as some of the best eggs I've ever eaten and forest raised pork, which believe it or not is the preferred method of raising pork as it is species specific allowing them to live in their natural environment. I will break down the difference between pasture raised and forrest raised later in the article.

Aside from meat though, Rise 'N' Swine also offers raw honey, jelly and jam, organic coffee from local roasters, Savage Wheat Project products (baked goods made from ancient grain), merchandise like T-shirts, organic maple syrup, some seasonings, some sauces, candles, soap, local crafts, local milk products, tallo, leaf lard, organs, bones for broth, bone marrow, suet, chicken meat, and much more.

If you've read my other articles you will know I mostly eat grass-fed beef products however I do love my bacon and breakfast sausages so I do buy some of the forest raised pork products as well.

What I love most about this farm store and there are many other stores with the same atmosphere, is its deep in the wooded areas of Holland just near Sardinia and even the drive itself is beautiful as the roads are lined with trees as you navigate through winding hills to get there. When arriving they have a large parking lot of stone with plenty of parking space and a beautiful creek running through off the side of the lot giving a nice natural ambience to the quiet area. When you walk in your greeted with the same warmth you feel when arriving home from a long day, the store is quiet, and the staff is very welcoming. While it is a small store there is a lot to take in when you first walk in but the store is organized in a way that allows you to flow effortlessly as you look at everything they have to offer and everything is labeled making it easy to find exactly what you are looking for.

If you can't find something or if you're looking for something they don't outright keep on the shelves the staff is more than willing to help and very knowledgeable on all the stores products. As far as the meats go they usually have pasture raised chicken products in the first cooler but I believe this is not year round as sometimes they are out of chicken products, if you eat chicken this is the best product you can get compared the overly processed chicken you find at most grocery stores. In the following coolers they have grass-fed beef and grain fed beef. In another post I will break down the differences of both beef and why grass-fed is the better choice but either way their beef products are much better than store bought and much bigger cuts at reasonable prices. As far as pork products go they have everything from bacon to sausages, pork chops, etc. I haven't tried the pork chops yet but the breakfast sausage patties and the bacon is to die for. The bacon they sell might be the thickest, widest slabs of bacon I have ever eaten and just taste way better than anything I have ever bought at a store.

As far as critiques I only have two. Sometimes they run out of eggs which can be a bummer but you can always find organic pasture raised eggs just about anywhere including other farms and most super markets when in a pinch. The second critique is than when I asked about their organs (specifically liver) they don't necessarily know which ones are grass-fed and which ones aren't but either way they do have a grass-fed ground beef and organ mix (liver & heart) that has all the nutrients you would get from the organs and makes some of the best burgers I have ever had. Side note: if you are interested in the benefits of organ meat heartandsoil.co sells phenomenal supplements made from dessicated beef organs for daily vitamins.

I strongly encourage anyone that is looking to cut processed food out and support local farmers to check this farm out and support the surrounding communities by switching to a "farmivore diet" (food from local farms) and taking the step to end support for large factory farming and buying from farmers who treat the animals with respect and allow them to eat and live the way they deserve. America has unfortunately turned into one of the least healthy countries because of the foods the FDA allows us to eat full of harmful chemicals and pesticides and local farmers are the forefront of selling nutritious food we can all benefit from. If you are curious to the benefits of eating a farm based diet please check out my first blog post in which I talk about how I lost 25lbs in 90 days from cutting out processed foods and supporting local farms. You don't have to eat the exact same way I do, I am not a scientist, nutritionist, or doctor I am just experimenting with my own diet and I eat the way I do because I trust my body and how it feels from the nutrition I choose to consume. Eat what makes you happy, feel healthy, and is convenient with your lifestyle. I encourage everyone to at least consider the benefits of better nutrition from local farms and if not for health do it to support your local community.

As always thank you for reading and keep an eye out for the next post. Pictures of the farm and its products can be found below.